On the 2nd of July 2000, there have been presidential elections in
Mexico (the elections are every six years).
There were three main contenders (and three that stand no chance): they are
- PRD: Cuauhtemoc Cárdenas Solorzano
- PRI: Francisco Labastica Ochoa
- PAN: Vicente Fox Quesada
These are the presidential elections. Although there is supposed to be a system of checks and balances among powes, in practice the Mexican president is God, and does exactly what he wants (and the country follows). The spoil system here reaches very deep into the government structure; basically that has more responsability than a typist finds his job in jeopardy. It all comes down in December.
Just before the election, it seemed that the vote would be split three ways with a slight majority favoring the PRI candidate. His election would have meant that the PRI stays in power. There have been talks of alliance among the other two candidates, but their ideological differences were too strong: the only thing they had in common is a desire to topple the PRI's reign.
The winner of these elections is, with a stunning lead of about 10% is Vicente Fox Quesada (more than 40% votes).
At this point, nobody knows what to expect. Mexico has never been governed (as a country; on the local and state level things are different) by any other party than the PRI. It is not clear through which alliances Fox will operate, nor what his stances will be on critical issues like: oil, labor, education ... the list is endless.