By Marco Aquino
LIMA, March 17 (Reuters) – Peruvian President Jose Balcazar shuffled his cabinet on Tuesday, just one month into his interim presidency, after his prime minister resigned.
Prime Minister Denisse Miralles resigned early on Tuesday after three weeks on the job, becoming the latest among Peru’s revolving door of top officials. She was appointed on February 24 shortly after Balcazar took office as the Andean nation’s eighth president in as many years.
Under Peruvian law, the resignation of the prime minister — who serves as the head of the cabinet — requires all 18 other ministers to step down, although the president can choose to reinstate each minister.
Balcazar named Luis Enrique Arroyo, a former general, as prime minister.
Among his other swaps, Balcazar chose Rodolfo Acuna, a deputy in Peru’s finance ministry, to be economy minister.
With less than a month until general elections scheduled for April 12, Balcazar also named new interior and defense ministers. He was still naming ministers as of 4 p.m. local time.
Balcazar is set to hand over power to the new president on July 28.
His office did not give a reason for Miralles’ exit.
Miralles in a resignation letter said she stepped down at Balcazar’s request. Local news outlets reported that Miralles lacked support in the legislature ahead of an expected routine vote on Wednesday to confirm her in her role.
(Reporting by Marco Aquino; Writing by Brendan O’Boyle, Editing by Natalia Siniawski, Rosalba O’Brien, Rod Nickel)
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