Keiko Fujimori, the daughter of disgraced ex-president Alberto Fujimori, remains the clear favorite to win presidential elections in Peru next year, an Ipsos poll showed on Sunday.
Some 33 percent of those surveyed on their intention to vote chose Fujimori, the leader of right-wing populist party Fuerza Popular, who formally launched her bid earlier this month.
She has pledged public investment in infrastructure to kick-start the Peruvian economy, an important metals exporter which like its Latin American neighbors has struggled against the backdrop of global weakness in commodities.
Although Fujimori's support had fallen slightly since the last poll, it was still more than twice the 16 percent obtained by second-place Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, a right-wing economist and former prime minister.
Alberto Fujimori ran Peru between 1990 and 2000 and is currently in jail for human rights abuses and corruption.
The only woman in a field packed with political old-timers, Keiko Fujimori has said she would not hesitate to issue new debt if needed, as well as dipping into a $10 billion emergency fund to finance infrastructure projects.
Businessman Cesar Acuna polled 13 percent, while ex-president Alan Garcia was on 8 percent.
The election is slated to take place in April 2016. If no candidate obtains 50 percent in the first round, the election goes to a run-off in June.
The poll suggests the election is likely to go a second round, which Fujimori would then win.
Approval ratings for current center-left president Ollanta Humala, who beat Keiko Fujimori in the 2011 election but cannot constitutionally run in 2016, remain low at around 16 percent, according to the Ipsos poll.
His popularity has been impacted by corruption allegations against his wife, as well as worries about crime.
The Ipsos poll of 1,846 people was carried out Dec. 5-11. It has a margin of error of plus/minus 2.3 percentage points.
