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Mexicans Worried Over Election Protests
- Many adults in Mexico are concerned over the possibility of public demonstrations after a very close presidential race, according to a poll by Zogby International and the University of Miami School of Communication. 53 per cent of respondents think election-related protests would be bad for Mexican democracy.
The survey was conducted in mid-June. Mexican voters chose their new president on Jul. 2. Yesterday, official results placed former energy minister Felipe Calderón of the governing National Action Party (PAN) as the winner with 35.88 per cent of all cast ballots, followed by former Mexico City mayor Andrés Manuel López Obrador of the Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) with 35.31 per cent.
Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) president Luis Carlos Ugalde announced the official tallies, adding, "The golden rule of democracy establishes that the winner is the candidate with the larger number of votes."
López Obrador has called on his supporters to assemble in Mexico City tomorrow for what he described as an "informative assembly", adding, "I will act responsibly, but I will not stand idly by. We are going to show that (the PAN) did not win the election, and they should be ashamed." 60 per cent of respondents say they would not support a protest called by López Obrador.
The PAN's Vicente Fox ended 71 years of uninterrupted rule by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) in the 2000 election, winning a six-year term with 42.5 per cent of the vote. The Mexican president will step down on Dec. 1.
Polling Data
Do you think election-related protests would be good or bad for Mexican democracy?
Good | 32% |
Bad | 53% |
Not sure | 12% |
If Andrés Manuel López Obrador calls for a protest of the election, would you support it?
Yes | 30% |
No | 60% |
Not sure | 10% |
Source: Zogby International / University of Miami School of Communication
Methodology: Face-to-face interviews with 1,000 Mexican adults, conducted from Jun. 10 to Jun. 15, 2006. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.