Page 10 - MONTT LATIN AMERICAN MAGAZINE, MAY 2021, (English)

AMLO Loses Ground in Congress and Limits His Term
A victory much smaller than expected was obtained by the ruling National Regeneration Movement, Morena in the recent Mexican legislatures. It decreased its presence in Congress and reduced the scope of the Head of State.
In the mid-term legislative elections held recently in Mexico, the party that supports the Government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the National Regeneration Movement, Morena, did not retain the quali ed majority that it required to change the Constitution, which is more than 333 deputies, but will continue to have an absolute majority. The ruling block decreased the number of seats and went from 313 to 279, which indicates the limits of the mandate of the Head of Government to promote the ambitious adjustment agenda, called the “Fourth Transformation” of Mexico.
Morena also su ered signi cant losses in the capital of Mexico, a megalopolis of nine million inhabitants, which since 1997 has been electing left-wing candidates. The defeats in Mexico City - which include seats in the local assembly and key mayors - is a symbolic blow to the government by the country’s educated middle class, said Genaro Lozano, an analyst and political scientist at the Universidad Iberoamericana. “It’s a strong setback,” said Carlos Bravo Regidor, a political analyst and professor at the Mexico City Centre for Economic Research and Teaching.
Improve Opposition
Speci cally, the results make it di icult for Lopez Obrador to advance with his emblematic plan to return the national energy
sector to the hands of the State.
The main opposition parties exceeded the expectations of the polls by setting aside the main ideological di erences and confronting Lopez Obrador with a coalition.
The pro-business National Action Party, PAN, will be the main opposition force in Congress. The opposition alliance made up of the PRI, the PAN and the PRD recovered from 137 seats to 197 after the disaster of 2018 and years of dismantling. In any case, Morena consolidates itself as the main force in the country, dominates the results in a large part of the 15 states in dispute and expands its territorial power.
Wave of Violence
The elections were overshadowed by a wave of political violence that draws attention to the challenge facing Lopez Obrador in the face of crime, which according to polls was the main concern of voters.
During the campaign, 34 candidates were assassinated and dozens of polling stations closed due to armed robberies or fear of reprisals. There were repeated threats and intimidation actions towards voters and those in charge of counting the votes.
mmm
Mexico Leader Set to Lose Ground
p10 Montt Latin American Magazine