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The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Peru

This page contains a list of the greatest Peruvian Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 15,577 Politicians, 82 of which were born in Peru. This makes Peru the birth place of the 40th most number of Politicians behind Brazil and Syria.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Peruvian Politicians of all time. This list of famous Peruvian Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Peruvian Politicians.

1. Atahualpa (1502 - 1533)

With an HPI of 73.45, Atahualpa is the most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 63 different languages on wikipedia.

Atahualpa (), also Atawallpa (Quechua), Atabalica, Atahuallpa, Atabalipa (c. 1502 – July 1533), was the last effective Inca emperor before his capture and execution during the Spanish conquest. Atahualpa was the son of the emperor Huayna Cápac, who died around 1525 along with his successor, Ninan Cuyochi, in a smallpox epidemic. Atahualpa initially accepted his half-brother Huáscar as the new emperor, who in turn appointed him as governor of Quito in the north of the empire. The uneasy peace between them deteriorated over the next few years. From 1529 to 1532, they contested the succession in the Inca Civil War, in which Atahualpa's forces defeated and captured Huáscar. Around the same time as Atahualpa's victory, a group of Spanish conquistadors, led by Francisco Pizarro, arrived in the region. In November, they captured Atahualpa during an ambush at Cajamarca. In captivity, Atahualpa gave a ransom in exchange for a promise of release and arranged for the execution of Huáscar. After receiving the ransom, the Spanish accused Atahualpa of treason, conspiracy against the Spanish Crown, and the murder of Huáscar. They put him on trial and sentenced him to death by burning at the stake. However, after his baptism in July 1533, he was garroted instead. A line of successors continued to claim the title of emperor, either as Spanish vassals or as rebel leaders, but none were able to hold comparable power.

2. Alberto Fujimori (1938 - )

With an HPI of 69.78, Alberto Fujimori is the 2nd most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 64 different languages.

Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto (Spanish: [alˈβeɾto fuxiˈmoɾi, – fuʝiˈmoɾi]; born Alberto Fujimori Fujimori; 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian former politician, professor and engineer who served as President of Peru from 1990 until his downfall in 2000, though de facto leadership was reportedly held by Vladimiro Montesinos, the then head of the National Intelligence Service. Frequently described as a dictator, he remains a controversial figure in Peruvian politics. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison for human rights abuses during his presidency but was released after 16 years on 6 December 2023 following an order by the Constitutional Court of Peru. A Peruvian of Japanese descent, Fujimori studied to be an agricultural engineer, and later obtained a master's degree in mathematics. From 1984 to 1989 he served as rector of the National Agrarian University before winning the presidency in the 1990 Peruvian general election. In the 1992 Peruvian self-coup, Fujimori dissolved the Congress and assumed full legislative and judicial powers. He changed the constitution and served as a figurehead president under Montesinos and the Peruvian Armed Forces and would reportedly adopt Plan Verde – a plan that involved the genocide of impoverished and indigenous Peruvians, the control or censorship of media in the nation and the establishment of a neoliberal economy controlled by a military junta. Fujimori won the presidential elections in 1995 and 2000. During his tenure, his policies primarily received support from the military, Peru's upper class and international financial institutions, helping him maintain control of Peru. His supporters credit his government with the creation of Fujimorism, defeating the Shining Path insurgency and restoring Peru's macroeconomic stability. Even amid his later prosecution in 2008 for crimes against humanity relating to his presidency, two-thirds of Peruvians polled voiced approval for his leadership in that period. Neoliberal policies and his political ideology of Fujimorism have influenced the governance of Peru into the present day through a cult of personality. In 2000, facing charges of corruption and human rights abuses, Fujimori fled Peru and took refuge in Japan. He maintained a self-imposed exile until his arrest while visiting Chile in November 2005. He was extradited to face criminal charges in Peru on 22 September 2007. In December 2007, Fujimori was convicted of ordering an illegal search and seizure and was sentenced to six years imprisonment. The Supreme Court upheld the decision on appeal. In April 2009, Fujimori was convicted of human rights violations and sentenced to 25 years imprisonment for his role in kidnappings and murders by the Grupo Colina death squad during his government's battle against leftist guerrillas in the 1990s. Specifically, he was found guilty of murder, bodily harm and two cases of kidnapping. The verdict marked the first time that an elected head of state has been extradited to his home country, tried, and convicted of human rights violations. In July 2009, Fujimori was sentenced to 7+1⁄2 years imprisonment for embezzlement after he admitted to giving $15 million from the Peruvian treasury to Montesinos. Two months later, he pleaded guilty in a fourth trial to bribery and received an additional six-year term. Transparency International determined the money embezzled by the Fujimori government – about $600 million or about $861 million in 2021 – to be the seventh-most for a head of government active within 1984–2004. Under Peruvian law, all the resultant sentences must run concurrently; thus, the maximum length of imprisonment remained 25 years. In December 2017, Fujimori was pardoned by President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, shortly after Fujimori's son, Congressman Kenji Fujimori, helped President Kuczynski survive an impeachment vote. The pardon was overturned by Peru's Supreme Court on 3 October 2018, and Fujimori was sent back to prison in January 2019. The Constitutional Court of Peru in a 4–3 ruling on 17 March 2022 reinstated the pardon. On 8 April 2022, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights overruled the Constitutional Court and ordered Peru not to release Fujimori. The Constitutional Court ordered on 5 December 2023 that he be immediately released. His daughter Keiko Fujimori, who is active in Peruvian politics and has run for president several times, has said that she would pardon her father should she be elected.

3. Javier Pérez de Cuéllar (1920 - 2020)

With an HPI of 69.69, Javier Pérez de Cuéllar is the 3rd most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 76 different languages.

Javier Felipe Ricardo Pérez de Cuéllar de la Guerra ( PERR-ess də KWAY-yar, Spanish: [xaˈβjeɾ ˈpeɾes ðe ˈkweʝaɾ]; 19 January 1920 – 4 March 2020) was a Peruvian diplomat and politician who served as the fifth Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1982 to 1991. He later served as Prime Minister of Peru from 2000 to 2001. Pérez de Cuéllar was a member of the Club of Madrid, a group of former heads of state and government, and the Inter-American Dialogue.

4. Túpac Amaru (1545 - 1572)

With an HPI of 68.45, Túpac Amaru is the 4th most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 37 different languages.

Túpac Amaru (14 April 1545 – 24 September 1572) (first name also spelled Tupac, Topa, Tupaq, Thupaq, Thupa, last name also spelled Amaro instead of Amaru) was the last Sapa Inca of the Neo-Inca State, the final remaining independent part of the Inca Empire. He was executed by the Spanish following a months-long pursuit after the fall of the Neo-Inca State.: 11 His name is derived from the Quechua words thupaq, meaning "royal" or "shining" and amaru, which can either mean "snake" or refer to the snake-like being from Andean mythology.

5. Pachacuti (1380 - 1460)

With an HPI of 66.29, Pachacuti is the 5th most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 39 different languages.

Pachacuti Inca Yupanqui, also called Pachacútec (Quechua: Pachakutiy Inka Yupanki), was the ninth Sapa Inca (before 1438 – 1471) of the Kingdom of Cusco which he transformed into the Inca Empire (Quechua: Tawantinsuyu). Most archaeologists now believe that the famous Inca site of Machu Picchu was built as an estate for Pachacuti. In Quechua Pachakutiy means 'the turn of the world' and Yupanki could mean 'honorable lord'. During his reign, Cusco grew from a hamlet into an empire that could compete with, and eventually overtake, the Chimú. He began an era of conquest that, within three generations, expanded the Inca dominion from the valley of Cusco to a sizeable part of western South America. According to chronicler Garcilaso de la Vega, Pachacuti created the Inti Raymi to celebrate the new year in the Andes of the Southern Hemisphere. Pachacuti is often linked to the origin and expansion of the Inti Sun Cult.

6. Manco Inca Yupanqui (1512 - 1544)

With an HPI of 64.08, Manco Inca Yupanqui is the 6th most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Manco Inca Yupanqui (around 1515 – 1544) (Manqu Inka Yupanki in Quechua) was the founder and monarch (Sapa Inca) of the independent Neo-Inca State in Vilcabamba, although he was originally a puppet Inca Emperor installed by the Spaniards. He was also known as "Manco II" and "Manco Cápac II". He was one of the sons of Huayna Capac and a younger brother of Huascar.: 150

7. Huáscar (1490 - 1533)

With an HPI of 62.29, Huáscar is the 7th most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 34 different languages.

Huáscar Inca (; Quechua: Waskar Inka) also Guazcar (before 1527 – 1532) was Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire from 1527 to 1532. He succeeded his father, Huayna Capac and his brother Ninan Cuyochi, both of whom died of smallpox while campaigning near Quito.: 112, 117–119

8. Topa Inca Yupanqui (1441 - 1493)

With an HPI of 61.97, Topa Inca Yupanqui is the 8th most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Topa Inca Yupanqui or Túpac Inca Yupanqui (Quechua: 'Tupaq Inka Yupanki'), also Topa Inga Yupangui, translated as "noble Inca accountant," (before 1471 – 1493) was the tenth Sapa Inca (1471–93) of the Inca Empire, fifth of the Hanan dynasty. His father was Pachacuti, and his son was Huayna Capac.: 93 Topa Inca belonged to the Qhapaq panaca (one of the clans of Inca nobles). His qoya (principal wife) was his older sister, Mama Ocllo.: 88

9. Viracocha Inca (1310 - 1438)

With an HPI of 61.54, Viracocha Inca is the 9th most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Viracocha (in hispanicized spelling) or Wiraqucha (Quechua, the name of a god) (c. 1410 – 1438) was the eighth Sapa Inca of the Kingdom of Cusco (beginning around 1410) and the third of the Hanan dynasty.

10. Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (1938 - )

With an HPI of 61.04, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski is the 10th most famous Peruvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 46 different languages.

Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Godard (Spanish: [kuˈtʃinski ɣoˈðaɾð]; born 3 October 1938), also known simply as PPK (Spanish: [pepeˈka]), is a Peruvian economist, public administrator, and former politician who served as the 59th President of Peru from 2016 to 2018. He served as Prime Minister of Peru and as Minister of Economy and Finance during the presidency of Alejandro Toledo. Kuczynski resigned from the presidency on 23 March 2018, following a successful impeachment vote and days before a probable conviction vote. Since 10 April 2019 he has been in pretrial detention, due to an ongoing investigation on corruption, money laundering, and connections to Odebrecht, a public works company accused of paying bribes. Pedro Pablo Kuczynski was born in the Miraflores District of Lima to parents who fled from Germany after the Nazis came to power. Kuczynski worked in the United States before entering Peruvian politics. He held positions at both the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund before being designated the general manager of Peru's Central Reserve Bank. He later served as Minister of Energy and Mines in the early 1980s under President Fernando Belaúnde Terry, and as Minister of Economy and Finance and Prime Minister under President Alejandro Toledo in the 2000s. Kuczynski was a presidential candidate in the 2011 presidential election, placing third. His opponents Ollanta Humala and Keiko Fujimori went on to the 5 June 2011 runoff election, in which Humala was elected. Kuczynski went on to stand in the 2016 election, where he narrowly defeated Fujimori in the second round. He was sworn in as president on 28 July 2016. On 15 December 2017, the Congress of Peru, which was controlled by the opposition Popular Force, initiated impeachment proceedings against Kuczynski, after he was accused of lying about receiving payments from the scandal-hit Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht in the mid-2000s. However, on 21 December 2017, the Peruvian Congress lacked the majority of votes needed to impeach Kuczynski. After further scandals and facing a second impeachment vote, Kuczynski resigned from the presidency on 21 March 2018 following the release of videos showing alleged acts of vote buying, presenting his resignation to the Council of Ministers. He was succeeded as president by his First Vice President Martín Vizcarra. On 28 April 2019, Kuczynski was placed under house arrest while under investigation for allegedly taking bribes from Odebrecht.

People

Pantheon has 82 people classified as politicians born between 1260 and 1990. Of these 82, 24 (29.27%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living politicians include Alberto Fujimori, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, and Alejandro Toledo. The most famous deceased politicians include Atahualpa, Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, and Túpac Amaru. As of April 2022, 8 new politicians have been added to Pantheon including Francisco Sagasti, Pedro Castillo, and José de la Riva Agüero.