Posted on 07/07/2006 8:08:30 AM PDT by SmithL
MEXICO CITY -- By the narrowest of margins, conservative Felipe Calderón won the official recount in Mexico's bitterly contested presidential election Thursday. But it may be a little early to break out the champagne.
A court challenge by the fiery leftist who lost the count ensures a nasty battle ahead, and an angry, divided electorate underscores the unprecedented challenge the next president will face in governing this sprawling country.
Volatile street protests, jittery financial markets and political class warfare seem all but certain to test Mexico's young democracy in coming days. And whoever wins the legal fight will walk into office with a split Congress, an urgent backlog of unfinished changes and only a third of the electorate convinced that he was the man for the job.
After a count and recount, Calderón, of the National Action Party, or PAN, won with 35.89 percent of the vote, to 35.31 percent for Andrés Manuel López Obrador of the Party of the Democratic Revolution, or PRD.
Only 243,934 votes separated the two men, out of the 41.8 million ballots cast.
"The time has arrived for unity and agreements," a smiling, but restrained Calderón told dozens of exuberant supporters who gathered at his campaign headquarters Thursday afternoon.
Calderón also called on all parties to put aside politics as usual "and work together as a team." To scattered boos, he reached out to López Obrador, saying, "I not only reiterate my respect but also share his desire for justice."
He also reached out to the López Obrador's supporters, appealing for time to gain their confidence and pledging to "work toward a Mexico without terrible inequalities" -- the central goal of López Obrador's platform.
López Obrador, the former mayor of Mexico City, was in no mood for the olive branch, however.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
They didn't mention that Obrador has learned from the Al Gore campaign that losing with honor is an old anacronism and today's loser must claim cheating and try to divide the people with anger for the next election cycle.
Except it didn't work for Gore and it didn't work for Kerry. It may fire up the base but pisses off the swing voters.
Jeez, didn't see THAT coming.
The PRI got 20 some %, are they to the right or left?
Will they claim darker Mexicans were intimidated from voting by lighter Mexicans?.......
They pointed this out when Bill Klinton was elected by roughly the same percentage, right?
"Except it didn't work for Gore and it didn't work for Kerry. It may fire up the base but pisses off the swing voters."
Exactly! But as we all know, liberals love to rehash failed strategies and policies again and again.
"Mexican victor facing anger from the left"
And don't forget the handwringing, moaning, and anger from the lefties outside of Mexico.
No Mexican president can privatise the oil industry; he simply hasn't the power to do so. PEMEX is and will be a state monopoly until the Mexican Constitution is changed.
How do you say "Selected not elected" in spanish?
Sounds like the DNC has FAX'd its playbook to its leftist amigos south of the border.
I've got a solution to all of North America's problems. The US liberals can move to Mexico, and the Mexican conservatives can move to the US.
Algore and López Obrador can fight over who gets to be "El Presidente."
So does everybody else.
One of our local radio stations read a statement in Spanish (supposedly) from López Obrador that blamed Ken Blackwell and Diebolt for the election irregularities!
(sarcasm, of course!)
If the left does take to the streets and there is violence and several million Mexicans want to flee the "political persecution" will they get a free pass into the US?
That's the way it works in a two (or more) party system. One party wins, and the others lose. Same message I give to sore-loser American leftists: grow up and get over it. You don't always get everything you want.
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