Keiko Fujimori, Right-wing lawmaker overtakes leftist Ollanta Humala in Peru polls

Keiko Fujimori, Right-wing lawmaker has overtaken leftist Ollanta Humala in the opinion polls in recent weeks by survey firm Datum and may reflect the same in Peru's June 5 presidential runoff, reports Reuters.

Fujimori, is the daughter of imprisoned former President Alberto Fujimori and is also backed by the business community, had the support of 52.9 percent of the voters.

Humala, a former army official who has sought to convince the voters he has abandoned his radical past, had 47.1 percent support when null and spoiled mock ballots were excluded in a simulated vote organized by pollsters, according to the nationwide survey published by newspaper Peru 21. Critics fear that once Humala is elected he might roll back free-market reforms.

He had tried to woo his voters by revising his government plans to encourage investment by dropping a controversial tax increase and a proposal to take over private pension funds.

Fujimori's opponents say she is too reliant on her father’s aides which makes her vulnerable like her father. His government collapsed in a cloud of corruption and human rights abuses in 2000, although he is credited with opening the economy to trade and ending hyperinflation.

Keiko Fujimori has widened her lead by about 5.8 points from the previous poll on May 16 to 18, giving relief to downward pressure on financial markets.