Peru Rejects Hugo Chavez-Endorsed Candidate

A deeply divided Peru Sunday rejected the rhetoric and revolutionary vision of Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez for a regional anti-U.S. 'nationalist' alliance in South America. Chavez's candidate in the Peruvian election, former military commander Ollanta Humala, conceded defeat early Monday in the final round of Peru's presidential election to former socialist President Alan Garcia. With nearly all of the votes counted, Garcia polled about 55 percent to Humala's 45 percent. Humala's main claim to fame before the 2006 election was that he led an unsuccessful coup attempt against former president Alberto Fujimori. Full Story.

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"Today, Peru has sent a message of national sovereignty and has defeated efforts by Hugo Chavez to incorporate us in the expansion strategy of his military and backward-looking model, which he's tried to implant in Latin America," Garcia told supporters after exit polls showed him winning the election.