A Peruvian named Hitler Mussolini has been elected mayor of a small Andean district after narrowly winning local elections, running for a leftist party. 45-year-old Hitler Mussolini Simeon Flores won the race for mayor of Keropalca, a district in the province of Lauricocha in the Huánuco department north of Lima, representing the centrist-left party "Ahora Nación." He received 229 votes — 34.5% of 663 valid ballots in Keropalca — surpassing his closest rival, Gaspar Benilde Osorio Zambrano of the "Popular Renewal Peru" party, who garnered 204 votes, or 30.8%. According to official data for 2024, the population of the district is estimated to be just over 730 people. Simeon Flores also leads the investment group Simeon Sac in Pilco Marca, in the same department. The voting took place as part of regional and municipal elections across Peru following the victory of the far-right Keiko Sofía Fujimori in the country's presidential elections. This is not the first time voters in this South American country have elected a person named Hitler. Representative of the center-right party "We Are Peru," Hitler Alba served as mayor of another small Andean town, Jungar, from 2011 to 2014. In 2018, he ran against Lenin Vladimir Rodríguez Valverde, who attempted to challenge the legality of his candidacy. Alba defeated other candidates, receiving 47.7% of the votes. Calling himself the "good Hitler," Alba campaigned with slogans like "Hitler is back" and "Hitler with the people." He claimed at the time that his father was unaware of the legacy of the Nazi dictator of Germany when he chose the name for him. Deputy and surgeon Hitler Saavedra served in the Congress of Peru from the "We Are Peru" party from 2021 until his death in 2024 at the age of 46. For Peruvians, it is not uncommon to choose historical or simply unusual names for their children, regardless of their negative or controversial connotations.
