On October 11, the Congress filed an appeal before the Constitutional Court to determine whether the Government had abused its constitutional powers when it dissolved the legislative branch. It is seeking a reversal of the dissolution and the suspension of the legislative elections scheduled for January 2020. According to Court officials, it will take 3 to 6 months for a judgment to be reached.

The appeal was signed by the President of the Permanent Commission, Pedro Olaechea and states that the vote of confidence presented to Congress by the Executive was aimed at modifying the mechanism for selecting magistrates and preventing the election of new judges to the Constitutional Court.

In the appeal, Olaechea argues that these are both prerogatives of the Legislative branch, and that the Government should not interfere, although he believes that the Executive in fact lacks the power to intervene in the election of magistrates to the Constitutional Court.

On October 17, the Peruvian Constitutional Court (CC) decided to task magistrate Carlos Ramos with deciding whether or not to admit the appeal presented by Pedro Olaechea against the dissolution of the Congress enacted by president Martín Vizcarra. The magistrate must present his decision on October 29. 

Ramos will have to justify before the court the reasons for and against Olaechea’s request in order for the CC to decide whether or not to allow its competence. If the court proceeds to study the measure, it will have to analyze and decide whether Vizcarra in fact acted in accordance with the Constitution or violated it by dissolving Congress.