The left triumphs in Mexico

Mexico celebrates the victory of Andrés Manuel López Obrador. (Image: Manuel Velasquez / Getty Images)

Mexico is indignant. Tens of thousands of people flocked to the main square Sunday night in delight with their first president on the left. Andrés Manuel López Obrador was elected new president of Mexico with approximately 53% of the votes. Far behind second place is the right-wing liberal Ricardo Anaya with around 23%. The government candidate, PRI, José Antonio Meade, finished third with about 16%.

"It's an honor to be with Obrador," the crowd sang in the main square and danced up to the campaign song. "We are tired of being deceived," said a 50-year-old barber proudly waving his national flag. The clear victory of the left and the poor outcome of the PRI are the coach back the people for the miserable years of the title president. Shortly after 11:30 pm, López Obrador, who bears the name of his initials Amlo, came forward in front of his supporters. He would not disappoint them, he promised, ushering in the necessary change. The crowd raged.

Famous Electoral Campaigner

López Obrador's victory is historic in many respects. The 64-year-old man is not only the first left-wing president of Mexico, but probably also the elected head of state with the best result. Its only four-year-old party, Movimiento Regeneración Nacional (Morena), with its two coalition parties, appears to have won a majority in both houses of parliament, winning at least five of the eight positions of government available for the election. In addition, Morena also won the post of mayor of Mexico City.

Traditional parties suffered a devastating defeat. Post-election polls soon gave such a clear picture after the closing of the ballot box that Meade and Anaya surrendered before the release of official forecasts and congratulated the winner. This surprised a large part of the Mexican public.

Many feared that the extremely influential inner circle of power of the traditional parties would cling to power by any means. Apparently, however, they seem to have realized that a significant portion of Mexicans do not want to know them anymore. López Obrador's electoral victory must be understood primarily as a rejection of the political system and the established parties that have ruled the country in recent years. The best activist of Amlo was the outgoing president Enrique Peña Nieto himself

. Mexicans are furious and disappointed by his six-year term, marked by corruption scandals, growing violence and faltering economic development. They want a change. López Obrador, who has positioned himself as an anti-establishment candidate, has capitalized on this feeling.

The Mexicans already knew his message very well. The leftist politician ran in 2006 and 2012 to the presidency, before being mayor of Mexico City. As he did then, he has tirelessly denounced the political elite and created parties this year, promising to fight corruption, eradicate the client system and create more justice. social. With his modest lifestyle, he has managed to convince the population this time around, even though he remains extremely vague about how he wants to implement his election promises.

Great Expectations

Amlo is now disputed. According to him, the main evil of the country is corruption. Converted to 25 billion francs, this Mexico should cost annually. With his strict control and austerity measures, he wants to realize savings that should be invested in projects. For example, he plans to double the pension and grant scholarships. But he does not reveal how he wants to dehydrate the stock of corruption. His security strategy is also convincing. Instead of a necessary structural reform, he wants to create a national guard and grant an amnesty to the drug lords.

His choice hurts his head especially in business circles. His announcements that he would test the opening of the public oil industry to the test of private investors and renegotiate Nafta make them think. They are also concerned that Amlo may turn Mexico into a second Venezuela. This seems unlikely. Amlo is no longer the radical left of yore. There is no mention of nationalization and the fight against monopolies. Even the tax increases, he wants to do at least in the first half of his term no. On the contrary, he wants Mexico to import less and replenish itself. In the spirit of "Mexico first", the country itself is supposed to produce gasoline or corn.

Amlo was anxious to reassure his critics after his victory Sunday night. The 64-year-old man said at a press conference that he would respect private investments and strengthen the single market. Even before his supporters in the main square, he struck a conciliatory tone. He promised a peaceful and orderly transfer of power because he did not want to jeopardize economic stability at all costs. He concluded the speech with the motto of his government: "Do not lie, do not steal and do not cheat". It pleased the Mexican who was tired of corruption. They responded loudly with "Viva México!"