A politician bearing the names of two of history's most notorious dictators has emerged victorious in a local election in Peru, securing a mayoral post with just 229 votes.
Hitler Mussolini Simeon Flores, 45, won the race in Queropalca, a remote district in the Peruvian Andes, according to the BBC. He defeated his closest rival by just 25 votes, securing 229 ballots in the local election.
Hitler Mussolini Simeon Flores
(Photo: JNEvotoinformado)
The candidate, representing the center-left Ahora Nación party, finished ahead of his opponent from the right-wing Renovación Popular Perú party.
Figures published by Peru's electoral authorities indicate that slightly more than 700 people participated in the vote, with Flores receiving approximately 34% of ballots cast.
Although he will represent a community of fewer than 1,000 residents, his unusual name has turned an otherwise obscure local election into a story attracting international attention.
Flores was born in Queropalca, located in the central Peruvian region of Huánuco, approximately 360 kilometers (224 miles) from the capital, Lima, according to his official candidate profile.
His first two names immediately evoke Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Nazi Germany, and Benito Mussolini, the fascist ruler of Italy.
Peruvian news outlet Peru21 described the unusual combination as a striking feature of the election, noting the historical significance of the two names. Yet Flores is hardly the first politician in Peru to attract attention for sharing a name with an infamous historical figure. In 2018, a man named Hitler Guesclin Alba Sánchez won the mayoral election in Yúngar, another district in the Peruvian Andes.
His campaign drew widespread attention not only because of his name, but also because his opponent was reportedly called Lenin Vladimir Rodríguez Valverde, whose names recalled Soviet revolutionary Vladimir Lenin.
Alba Sánchez embraced the unusual circumstances, reportedly campaigning under the slogan: "I'm the good Hitler."
Similar headlines emerged in Africa in 2020, when Adolf Hitler Uunona won a local election in Namibia. The southern African country was once a German colony, and German-influenced given names, including Adolf, have remained in use among parts of the population.
Now, six years later, another candidate with a name associated with Europe's darkest chapter has found himself in the international spotlight, this time after winning a small municipal election in the mountains of Peru.
First published: 12:02, 10.10.26