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 News Around the Republic of Mexico | August 2007 
Mexicans Vote in Baja California, Oaxaca
 Luis Perez - Associated Press
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| | Pedestrians walk past election propaganda in Tijuana, Mexico, Saturday, Aug. 4, 2007, ahead of tomorrow's governor elections in Mexico's Baja California state. (AP/David Maung) |
Tijuana, Mexico - A wealthy dog track owner and an economist from Mexico's ruling party are vying to become governor of Baja California state in Sunday elections across the border from California and Arizona.
Most polls give a slight advantage to Jose Guadalupe Osuna, of President Felipe Calderon's National Action Party, who accuses his opponent of corruption and ties to drug traffickers.
Tijuana Mayor Jorge Hank Rhon — a self-proclaimed billionaire who brags about drinking tequila mixed with bear bile and steeped with the penises of tigers, lions and dogs — has denied those charges, calling them politically motivated.
Hank Rhon built a faithful following as mayor by rounding up petty thieves, launching programs to keep kids in school and throwing huge street parties to celebrate Mothers' Day and Children's Day.
His most popular program was "Open Door" Tuesdays, when he met privately with anyone who asked to see him and often gave them whatever they needed to get by — $50, a wheelchair, sometimes even a job.
But his opponents complain those policies marked a return to the days of Mexico's patronage politics, when his Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, often bought votes or support with handouts.
In a second election Sunday in southern Oaxaca state, protesters who took over the state capital for months last year are urging voters to reject lawmakers aligned with PRI Gov. Ulises Ruiz, whom they accuse of violently repressing dissent.
They're also warning of a possible repeat of the dirty tactics they say he used to rig his election in 2004. Ruiz, who has denied the allegations, still has three years left in his term.
Police in both states are preparing for possible violence, which has flared at times during the campaigns.
Osuna urged his supporters to make sure the election stays clean, saying: "Take your photo and video cameras wherever you can, to defend the vote." |
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