ON JUNE 2 100 million Mexicans can vote on who will be the country’s next elected president.

Claudia Sheinbaum of the Morena party (National Regeneration Movement) is likely to win. A left-wing supporter of the retiring President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (aka Amlo) she is a scientist and the mayor of Mexico City. She currently holds a 25 per cent lead in the polls.

Besides the presidency the country will elect representatives to all 628 seats in Congress, nine governorships, more than 1,000 local legislators and around 18,000 municipal roles. 

Besides setting the political agenda, the election will also define the future of the right-wing opposition — a discredited group of politicians, judges and wealthy individuals stung by the changes brought about by Amlo.

The coalition of opposition parties includes centre-right candidates, the centrist Institutional Revolutionary Party and the centre-left Democratic Revolution (PRD). 

There is no shortage of “wannabe” populists in the image of Argentinian President Javier Milei and no shortage of rightwingers who denounce Amlo as a dictator and say he is corrupt, despite the fact that he has run a democratic, open, competent and honest administration which Sheinbaum says she will continue.

Amlo’s achievements have been admirable — universal public pensions, disability benefit, educational grants, scholarships, apprenticeships, grants for small business, aiding farmers, increases in the minimum wage, an end to abusive outsourcing, free trade union elections where workers vote for the union of their choice and not the union the company chooses.

Co-operation with the US labour movement and the Biden administration has seen complaints over union-busting and the fixing of ballots overturn corrupt ballot results with the development of fast-track procedures against yellow unions and companies intent on keeping out independent unions.

There is also economic success: low inflation, economic growth for the last three years and appreciation of the peso against the US dollar and the restoration of Mexico’s energy sovereignty, with national public ownership or control of petroleum, gas, electricity and lithium.

The right-wing opposition has tried to discredit Amlo and the Mexican judiciary has continued to try to sabotage his government. Mexican judges pay themselves themselves big salaries and benefits, several times more than Amlo himself. 

Judges also use legal technicalities to grant stays of execution against the implementation of progressive policies and have authorised the release of corrupt officials detained on serious charges including human rights abuses.

Mexico is key player in Latin America playing a crucial role in the revival of Celac, the Community of Latin American States. It is a steadfast supporter of Cuba, has condemned the coups in Bolivia in 2019 and Peru in 2022 and has expressed solidarity with progressive governments in Colombia, Brazil, Honduras and Chile.

On Palestine, Mexico has since the October Hamas massacre called for a ceasefire, and has now (with Chile) called for investigation by the International Criminal Court.

For these reasons Amlo has called for a two-thirds super-majority for Moreno in Congress with Claudia Sheinbaum as president. 

The Mexico Solidarity Forum is hosting a live event today, Wednesday May 22, from 6.30pm-8pm at Unite, 33-37 Moreland Street, London EC1V 8BB on why Mexico’s elections are crucial for Latin America’s future. Speakers include Tom Murphy, Unite London print branch; David Raby, professor of Latin American history; Claudia Turbet-Delof, co-ordinator of Bolivia Friends and Hackney councillor; Louise Richards, Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign; Julia Felmanas, Brazilian speaker; Napoleon Gomez Urrutia, mining union president and Morena party senator; and Violeta Vazquez Rojas, Mexican academic and journalist.