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 ...
SSDC(ountry)
The PRI is to the left. The PRD is the virulent, communist left.
Funny how the MSM calls all of these new age communists in Latin America "fiery leftist".
PEMEX is 1/5 the size of EXXON but has 3 times more employees. At the very least PEMEX is a very large patronage plum and may be a phantom employee salary producing machine. 50,000, or so, pay checks/month makes for a comfortable retirement.
Neither. They're corrupt.
angry leftists? NO WAY!!!
PEMEX has needed internal reorganisation since at least the 1980s. I suppose PRI was content to let sleeping dogs lie. PAN may not be, although with no majority in their congress, PAN probably will find this too big a task.
Mexico may want to be but they are too poor. There's little money to fund it. What socialist programs do they have? They don't even have unemployment insurance, which is why they run to America for jobs, free health care, and welfare. We are 100 times the socialist country they are.
There are two Mexicos actually. N.Mexico is the PAN stronghold, is more conservative, religious, prosperous, has a large part of Mexico's industrial base. And is also more white/mestizo than S Mexico. (and is also where the Mexican-stereotype of senoritas, somberos, and vaqueros comes from.
S.Mexico is where most of the illegals come from. It is heavily Indian, poor, and leftist (this is where Chiapas is)
Maybe he should be known as "Lopez Albragore"
Most Mexicans in the U.S. illegally voted for Obrador. However, Bush conspired with Fox to prevent these votes (at least those for Obrador) from getting counted. Do you think they'll buy that?? :)
Yes! It has very spicy, latin feel to it, no?
Mexican presidents leave office as billionares. What's a little honor and good sportsmanship when there's so much money at stake.
The PRI ran Mexico in practically a one party socialist state from 1917 until Fox's election six years ago. This election may be bitter, but it is healthy for Mexico. For only the second time in nearly a century, every Mexican's votes have counted for something. They never used to.
...assuming that there are any "swing voters" in Mexico.
What's another word for synonym?
I read somewhere once that the final years of a Mexican president's term are known as "the stealing years."
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