Mexico holds elections on Sunday to elect 500 members of the lower house of Congress, as well as governors in 15 states and a host of thousands of municipal leaders.
Mayoral candidate, Jorge Carlos Ramírez Marín, of the PRI, has said that if elected he will re-examine several recent decisions, including Mérida’s controversial bicycle lanes and the reconstruction of the paso deprimido underpass.
Most pollsters in Yucatán are projecting that Mayor Renán Barrera Concha, of the PAN, is likely to win a third term as mayor of Mérida.
However, analysts are quick to point out that a low turnout rate on election day, could very well hand victory to Ramírez Marín.
At a national level, the vote is seen as a key test of the popularity of the government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
Earlier: Alcohol sales to be banned in Yucatán over election weekend
The political party founded by President Lopez Obrador, MORENA, holds a two-thirds majority in the lower house of congress. A loss of this supermajority would complicate the president’s promised transformation of the country, dubbed “la cuarta transformación.”
Critics point out that a supermajority in Congress has allowed the president to amend the constitution without negotiating with his opponents.
Members of the opposition have suggested that if his party is victorious on Sunday, he may change the Constitution once again to be able to seek reelection.
For his part, López Obrador has said on several occasions that he will not run again in 2024 but has refused to sign a pact to that effect.
Despite the shaky economy and COVID-19 pandemic, the president and his party still enjoy high popularity. Experts suggest this is because the opposition has yet to propose a credible alternative.
