Mexican voters are set to decide on their next president on Sunday, mainly between a former academic and a former senator who is also a technology entrepreneur.
About 100 million people are registered to vote in an election that is likely to give the country its first female president and replace President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
The election is widely seen as a referendum on López Obrador, a populist who has expanded social programs but largely failed to reduce cartel violence in Mexico.
Pre-candidate and mayor of Mexico City claudia sheinbaum He is running with the Morena party.
Sheinbaum has promised to continue all of López Obrador’s populist policies, including a universal pension for the elderly and a program that pays young people to take internships.
Opposition presidential candidate Xochitl Gálvez (left) and presidential favorite Claudia Sheinbaum (right)
Sheinbaum supporters fill the Zócalo during his campaign closing event in Mexico City.
Xochitl GalvezThe opposition presidential candidate, whose father was an Otomi Indian, went from selling snacks on the street in her poor hometown to starting her own technology companies.
A candidate for a coalition of major opposition parties, she left the Senate last year to focus her ire on López Obrado’s decision to avoid confronting drug cartels through his “hugs, not bullets” policy.
He has pledged to pursue criminals more aggressively.
A third candidate from a smaller party, Jorge Álvarez Máynez, is far behind.
Sheinbaum raises his arms after speaking at his closing campaign rally in the Zócalo in Mexico City
Gálvez speaks during his campaign closing event in Los Reyes la Paz, on the outskirts of Mexico City.
Persistent cartel violence, which has seen dozens of local candidates killed in a series of political violence, along with Mexico’s lackluster economic performance, are top issues on voters’ minds.
In the past election season, 145 people with connections to different races across the country have been murdered.
About 675,000 Mexicans living abroad are registered to vote, but only a small percentage have done so in the past.
However, overall voter turnout has hovered around 60 percent in recent elections.
Beyond the fight for control of Congress, the race for Mexico City – whose top position is now considered equivalent to a governorship – is also crucial in this election.
Gálvez supporters chant his name at his campaign closing rally
A Sheinbaum supporter takes a selfie with a campaign sign during his campaign closing rally.
Sheinbaum is just the latest of many Mexico City mayors, including López Obrador, who is running for president.
Several gubernatorial races in large, populous states such as Veracruz and Jalisco are also attracting interest.
In addition to the presidential election, a total of 20,000 parliamentary and local positions are on residents’ ballots, NBC News reported. This includes 500 members of Congress and 128 senators.
Polls open today at 8 am and close at 6 pm in most of the country.
The first preliminary and partial results are expected at 9:00 p.m., after the closing of the last polls in different time zones.