Man named Hitler Mussolini elected mayor in Peru
The left-wing candidate won a narrow victory in a remote district in the Peruvian Andes, exit polls show.
A man named Hitler Mussolini Simeon Flores has won a narrow victory in Peru’s local elections, according to exit polls.
The centre-left Ahora Nación candidate was elected mayor of Queropalca, a remote district in the Peruvian Andes.
About 229 residents backed the 45-year-old, leaving him just 25 votes ahead of the runner-up from the right-wing Renovación Popular Perú party.
Although he has been elected to represent fewer than 1,000 people, the fact that his forenames match those of two notorious fascist dictators has brought unusual international attention to this small part of the country.
Figures from Peru’s elections office indicated that just over 700 people took part in the vote, with Simeon winning roughly 34% of the ballots.
According to his candidate profile, he was born in the district in Huánuco, the central department about 360km (224 miles) from Lima.
His name matching Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini - “two of the most well-known figures of 20th-Century European totalitarian regimes” - made his candidacy a “striking event,” local outlet Peru21 reported.
Even with the attention sparked by his name, local media pointed out that Hitler Guesclin Alba Sánchez had been elected mayor of Yúngar in 2018.
He is said to have defeated his rival Lenin Vladimir Rodríguez Valverde after running with the slogan “I’m the good Hitler”.
A politician called Adolf Hitler Uunona drew similar interest in 2020 after winning local elections in Namibia - a former German colony where Adolf and other Germanic first names are not unusual.