Mexico Politics: Country prepares for historic elections on Sunday
Updated 10:42, 03-Jul-2018
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Mexicans will choose their next president as well as lawmakers for both houses of Congress on Sunday. It's been a particularly violent campaign season for many of those running for office. More than 120 candidates have been murdered in the nine-month lead-up to the election, according to one report by a risk management company. CGTN's Franc Contreras.
Mexico's election campaign ended this week. Most polls indicate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will win Sunday's vote. Many observers expect a landslide victory for the man known by his initials, AMLO.
His closing campaign event filled Mexico City's giant Azteca Stadium. Lopez Obrador promises to govern for all Mexicans. He says he'll work to spur regional development. His top priority - fighting corruption in the highest echelons of power.
ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ OBRADOR MORENA PARTY CANDIDATE "I will send the Congress an initiative to reform Article 102 of the Constitution, purposing that standing presidents can be put on trial for crimes of corruption. Halfway through my term, the people will be allowed to decide if I continue with my mandate."
Most political analysts in Mexico, including Jorge Javier Romero, believe voters will give Lopez Obrador that mandate.
JORGE JAVIER ROMERO POLITICAL ANALYST "The election has the characteristics of an electoral cataclysm. That's when a new force emerges that upsets all the balance among the parties that previously controlled the political system."
But Romero says history will make it difficult for Lopez Obrador to end corruption.
JORGE JAVIER ROMERO POLITICAL ANALYST "It is the way that Mexican society learned to relate with power, and it has been that way since the colonial era."
Security is also a key issue for Mexican voters, as the homicide rate has climbed in regions controlled by drug trafficking organizations. Better paying jobs and ending economic inequality are also on the minds of voters. This week, other candidates also closed their campaigns and ALSO addressed these issues. Officials at Mexico's National Electoral Institute say the results will be known Sunday night.
FRANC CONTRERAS MEXICO CITY "The stage is set and the only thing missing now is the actual vote set to take place Sunday with millions of people casting their ballots all across this Latin American."