Backers of Obrador demand vote recount
MONTERREY, Mexico, AP
Tens of thousands of supporters of a fiery leftist who claims Mexico's presidential election was rigged against him streamed out of towns and cities across the nation on their way to the capital to demand a recount of the ballots.
Carrying duffel bags and placards boosting Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's Democratic Revolution Party, the protesters gathered Wednesday in Mexico's 300 electoral districts from where they began their trip to Mexico City. A mass rally is planned there for Sunday.
They hope to pressure the Federal Electoral Tribunal to order a ballot-by-ballot recount of the 41 million votes cast in the July 2 election, which the official tally showed conservative Felipe Calderon winning by 244,000 votes -- a 0.6 percent margin. The tribunal, which has the final say on the vote, will in the coming days start weighing the appeals and fraud allegations.
President Vicente Fox of Calderon's National Action Party has denied interfering in the election, and monitors from the European Union said they found no irregularities. Calderon has called for calm and started forming a transitional team to take office, angering Lopez Obrador.
Lawyers for Lopez Obrador, who has pledged to rule for the poor, submitted to the electoral tribunal dozens of boxes filled with videos and other alleged proof of misconduct. The leftist says a manual recount will swing the vote in his favor -- something denied by Calderon's party.
Late Wednesday, Lopez Obrador aide Jesus Ortega said more than 40,000 people had begun their journey to Mexico City and promised that Sunday's demonstration would be "gigantic."
"I hope that it will be an extraordinary, gigantic march that reflects the anger over the fraud," Ortega said.
In the northern industrial city of Monterrey, about 120 protesters at a downtown plaza hung banners that read "No to electoral fraud! Obrador is president!"
Gelasia Loredo, a 66-year-old retiree who lives on a monthly pension of US$150 (euro120), said she traveled by bus 440 miles (700 kilometers) to Mexico City last year to defend Lopez Obrador when he faced criminal charges, which were later dropped.
"They've been sabotaging him from the beginning," Loredo said. "The people with money are just a handful, but we, the poor, are millions and we're going to defend him."
Lopez Obrador said Wednesday that there had been "fascist attacks" against him. Among these he said, were television advertisements financed by a business consortium, including a potato chip maker, that warned of radical changes to Mexico without mentioning Lopez Obrador by name. The leftist also repeated claims that Fox was "a traitor to democracy" and was involved in election fraud.
In Mexico City, Luis Herrera, 30, marched with about 100 Lopez Obrador supporters in a protest. "If the electoral tribunal disappoints us, I believe there is going to be a big problem," he said.
Lopez Obrador has promised the protests will be peaceful, although one of his top advisers said Wednesday that people could get restless.
"There is no problem of the country being ungovernable right now, but as more time passes, there will be," Manuel Camacho Solis told reporters.
Throughout his political career, Lopez Obrador has used street protests to pressure the government and the courts.
Last year, as Mexico City mayor, he led huge demonstrations that eventually forced Fox's administration to drop a legal case that would have kept Lopez Obrador out of the presidential race.
On Saturday, more than 100,000 of his supporters gathered in Mexico City's central plaza to listen to his allegations of fraud.
In Lopez Obrador's home state of Tabasco on Wednesday, dozens of supporters carrying signs that read "Vote by vote! No to electoral fraud!" began a 60-mile (100-kilometer) march.
Many of them supported their native son in 1995 during months of protesting after Lopez Obrador lost the state governor's race. The demonstrators will travel the last 370 miles (600 kilometers) of their journey to Mexico City by bus, organizers said.
The law allows a re-count only for specific polling places where credible evidence of irregularities exist. The leftist's supporters say that applies to at least 50,000 of the approximately 130,000 polling places.
Under Mexican law, no president-elect can be declared until the appeals process is completed. The widely respected tribunal has overturned two gubernatorial races in recent years, both for meddling by the ruling party.
A winner must be declared by Sept. 6.
Tens of thousands of supporters of a fiery leftist who claims Mexico's presidential election was rigged against him streamed out of towns and cities across the nation on their way to the capital to demand a recount of the ballots.
Carrying duffel bags and placards boosting Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's Democratic Revolution Party, the protesters gathered Wednesday in Mexico's 300 electoral districts from where they began their trip to Mexico City. A mass rally is planned there for Sunday.
They hope to pressure the Federal Electoral Tribunal to order a ballot-by-ballot recount of the 41 million votes cast in the July 2 election, which the official tally showed conservative Felipe Calderon winning by 244,000 votes -- a 0.6 percent margin. The tribunal, which has the final say on the vote, will in the coming days start weighing the appeals and fraud allegations.
President Vicente Fox of Calderon's National Action Party has denied interfering in the election, and monitors from the European Union said they found no irregularities. Calderon has called for calm and started forming a transitional team to take office, angering Lopez Obrador.
Lawyers for Lopez Obrador, who has pledged to rule for the poor, submitted to the electoral tribunal dozens of boxes filled with videos and other alleged proof of misconduct. The leftist says a manual recount will swing the vote in his favor -- something denied by Calderon's party.
Late Wednesday, Lopez Obrador aide Jesus Ortega said more than 40,000 people had begun their journey to Mexico City and promised that Sunday's demonstration would be "gigantic."
"I hope that it will be an extraordinary, gigantic march that reflects the anger over the fraud," Ortega said.
In the northern industrial city of Monterrey, about 120 protesters at a downtown plaza hung banners that read "No to electoral fraud! Obrador is president!"
Gelasia Loredo, a 66-year-old retiree who lives on a monthly pension of US$150 (euro120), said she traveled by bus 440 miles (700 kilometers) to Mexico City last year to defend Lopez Obrador when he faced criminal charges, which were later dropped.
"They've been sabotaging him from the beginning," Loredo said. "The people with money are just a handful, but we, the poor, are millions and we're going to defend him."
Lopez Obrador said Wednesday that there had been "fascist attacks" against him. Among these he said, were television advertisements financed by a business consortium, including a potato chip maker, that warned of radical changes to Mexico without mentioning Lopez Obrador by name. The leftist also repeated claims that Fox was "a traitor to democracy" and was involved in election fraud.
In Mexico City, Luis Herrera, 30, marched with about 100 Lopez Obrador supporters in a protest. "If the electoral tribunal disappoints us, I believe there is going to be a big problem," he said.
Lopez Obrador has promised the protests will be peaceful, although one of his top advisers said Wednesday that people could get restless.
"There is no problem of the country being ungovernable right now, but as more time passes, there will be," Manuel Camacho Solis told reporters.
Throughout his political career, Lopez Obrador has used street protests to pressure the government and the courts.
Last year, as Mexico City mayor, he led huge demonstrations that eventually forced Fox's administration to drop a legal case that would have kept Lopez Obrador out of the presidential race.
On Saturday, more than 100,000 of his supporters gathered in Mexico City's central plaza to listen to his allegations of fraud.
In Lopez Obrador's home state of Tabasco on Wednesday, dozens of supporters carrying signs that read "Vote by vote! No to electoral fraud!" began a 60-mile (100-kilometer) march.
Many of them supported their native son in 1995 during months of protesting after Lopez Obrador lost the state governor's race. The demonstrators will travel the last 370 miles (600 kilometers) of their journey to Mexico City by bus, organizers said.
The law allows a re-count only for specific polling places where credible evidence of irregularities exist. The leftist's supporters say that applies to at least 50,000 of the approximately 130,000 polling places.
Under Mexican law, no president-elect can be declared until the appeals process is completed. The widely respected tribunal has overturned two gubernatorial races in recent years, both for meddling by the ruling party.
A winner must be declared by Sept. 6.
posted by Alice at
Friday, July 14, 2006
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