The triumph of the left in Mexico
The victory of leftist presidential candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador in the Mexican elections Sunday was more than expected.
López Obrador won by a comfortable margin, easily defeating two other candidates. In addition, of the nine governorships in Mexico, five have been left in the hands of López Obrador’s party, the National Regeneration Movement (MORENA).
So what were the reasons for this overwhelming triumph for a party and its leader?
The reasons are to be found in the fatigue of the Mexican people with conservative governments that have failed for decades to alleviate the country’s high poverty rate, violence or curve the widespread cancerous government corruption.
The government of the outgoing president, Enrique Peña Nieto, could not control drug trafficker or their wars nor the repercussion of those battles on Mexican society. And Mexicans want a better relationship with the U.S. Peña Nieto’s combative exchanges with President Donald Trump damaged his popularity and favored the candidacy of López Obrador, whose attitude toward Trump is less prickly.
López Obrador wants to improve the economic situation of Mexico’s poor class and review the energy reform that privatized the state oil monopoly called PEMEX. He promises a government that will embrace “austerity without luxuries or privileges” for the ruling class. And he wants to reduce the salaries of high ranking public officials by as much as 50 percent.
The new president promises to increase social programs and reduce overall poverty. And that could reduce the number of Mexicans who turn to the United States for a better life. As the second largest economy in Latin America, more than 53 million Mexicans, or 44 percent of the population, live in poverty, and more than seven million live in extreme poverty. López Obrador, who as mayor of Mexico City drove around in an old Nissan Sentra, promised on the campaign trail that he would not occupy the presidential residence of Los Pinos, but instead continue living in his modest home.
But financial analysts have pointed to a lack of specifics in López Obrador’s lofty goals and economic parity for Mexicans. And at the same time, they fear that his populist’s strategies will hurt long-term growth.
However, López Obrador has promised he will not be inflexible; his government “will represent all Mexicans, rich and poor … “We will listen to everyone, but we will give preference to the most humble and the forgotten, especially the indigenous peoples of Mexico.” Yes, enticing leftist propaganda. He also says that there will be “business freedom, freedom of expression and religious freedom.”
But one critical question is how will López Obrador’s relationship with President Trump impact his presidency? Both leaders propose opposite ideological models, and it will not be easy to advance crucial issues, such as reducing immigration and the renegotiating of the North American Free Trade Agreement, NAFTA.
So far, the White House has not expressed signs of hostility toward the president-elect of Mexico. And López Obrador has said he will strive for “a relationship of friendship and cooperation with the U.S., but always based on mutual respect and the defense of our fellow immigrants.”
We’ll soon find out if the leftist president of Mexico will collide with the capitalist president of the U.S. That’s the real challenge for two countries united by geography and often separated by history and immigration.
This story was originally published July 3, 2018 at 2:11 AM with the headline "The triumph of the left in Mexico."