Background checks on politicians

Ahead of the upcoming 5 July legislative elections for all 500 seats of Mexico's lower house (as well as some gubernatorial seats), the PRD, has publicly asked the Attorney General's office (PGR) to complete background checks on all PRD candidates to ensure that they have no ties to organized crime.

The PRD has also asked the PGR to conduct background checks on PAN and PRI candidates as well.

This is a bold move, considering it's quite possible the PGR fingers some PRD members for ties to org. crime.

What's more interesting is that the PRI, arguably the party best positioned to gain some seats, is also the party most likely to have compromised politicians on the ticket, especially in the lower house.

The PAN, President Calderon's party, is in trouble, as many people are tired of the violence, and there's a growing momentum in Mexico of columnists, academics, thinkers, etc, who suspect the PAN will lose big in the upcoming elections.

But if the PGR takes up the PRD on its offer, then we're in for an interesting election cycle.

Finally, it's worth mention that many of us who think about ties between org. crime and politicians in Mexico would agree that org. crime focuses more on bribing state level politicians, from the governor down, and normally leaves the federal stuff alone - with the exception of killing federal level law enforcement officials from time to time.

So if the PGR does choose to investigate all candidates, it will be interesting to see who gets caught and who gets elected. Either way, I suspect Calderon will not like the outcome.

The PRI's Comeback?

Upcoming legislative elections in Mexico may tell us just how tight a grip organized crime has on the political establishment.

According to a poll released on 9 February by Mexican daily El Universal, the former ruling party, the PRI, currently enjoys nearly 40% of the potential vote, while Calderon's PAN party would take 25% and the beleaguered PRD would take 15%.

The PRI, as I have commented before, is a party known to have close ties to organized crime in Mexico's northern states, and likely in other states across the nation.

With all 500 members of Mexico's lower house and at least four state governors up for re-election on 5 July, we'll see if the PRI takes control of the lower house. If so, I'll be sure to let you know which members have suspected ties with organized crime...