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(Toluca. Mex.) The party that governed Mexico for seven decades won a crushing victory Sunday in the most important state race before next year's presidential elections. But another state vote was closer than expected.

Victory in big Mexico State bolsters the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, but it does not guarantee a return to the presidency the party lost in 2000: Its potential candidates all trail Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador in the polls.

With 73.3 per cent of the vote counted, the PRI's Enrique Pena Nieto had 46.9 per cent of the vote to 25.3 per cent for Ruben Mendoza of President
Vicente Fox's National Action Party and 24.2 per cent for Yeidckol Polevnsky of Lopez Obrador's Democratic Revolution Party.

"It was a clear and strong victory," Pena Nieto said in a victory speech. He praised Mendoza for telephoning to concede defeat.

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[ 04 July 2005: Message edited by: Canyonero ]

quote:

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heavily controlled by foreign (*cough*USian*cough8) interests.)

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I do not think this is true at all. Sleazy, yes. Authoritarian, yes. But controlled by the United States or interests emanating from there?

What's up with that? All these years, all the explanations about the media and stuff, and I've still never really understood it.

[ 04 July 2005: Message edited by: Rufus Polson ]

Not to say they aren't significantly better in a leftist opinion.

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The Democratic Revolution candidate, a former business chamber leader, puzzled many when she acknowledged having changed her name from the very Mexican Citlali Ibanez to something most Mexicans can barely pronounce.

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Well, the article reports her name as Yeidckol Polevnsky, which could suggest she changed her name to try to reconnect with an Eastern European heritage. OTOH, this next bit is positively flaky:

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The campaign, which leaned heavily on the popular Lopez Obrador, was not helped when aides suggested UFOs were buzzing her rallies.

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Originally posted by Hawkins:
My understanding in parts of Mexico the PRD are not much better.

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Also I would not be overly discouraged by the constant rambling as "Mexico's largest state", as Mexico DF is the second largest, and not exceptionally far behind.

But PRI was out vote buying like the olden days.
"In contrast, the PRI kicked its well-oiled campaign engine into gear in the State of Mexico, even handing out bags of cement and food parcels to try to buy votes."

""It was a campaign where the state gave everything so its candidate could win. It's a dynasty," said voter Jose Estanislau, a federal government employee."

from the Boston.com

[ 05 July 2005: Message edited by: Hawkins ]