MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Mexico ready for crucial television debate

Mexico's presidential candidates in the run up to the July 2 election will hold Tuesday evening a televised debate, which is considered crucial given the parity among the contenders.

Populist candidate Andres Lopez Obrador, who is neck and neck in public opinion surveys with Felipe Calderon of the ruling National Action Party (PAN) promised to debate his "Alternative Project for the Nation," which essentially sets forth drastic changes to the country's economic policies.

The proposals of Lopez Obrador, former Mexico City mayor who skipped the first candidates' debate in April and is a member of the Party of the Democratic Revolution, has been well-received by lower class Mexicans at large but has unsettled some members of the business community and foreign investors.

The five candidates are Calderon; Lopez Obrador; Roberto Madrazo from the Institutional Revolutionary Party, PRI, which ruled Mexico for over seven decades; Patricia Mercado and Roberto Campa both representing minority testimonial parties.

Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute reports that the proposed issues for the debate's agenda include law and order; corruption; foreign relations and migration policy; democratic governance and state reform, according to the Federal Electoral Institute.

Spokespersons for Calderon, Lopez Obrador and Madrazo, the hopefuls with the best chances to succeed President Vicente Fox, agreed that the debate will be important to gauge the candidates' impact on television audience but do not consider the outcome to be "necessarily irreversible".

Lopez Obrador, whose absence in the April debate is interpreted as a significant factor in his slide in public opinion polls that he was leading comfortably for the previous two years, has complained bitterly about PAN' "dirty war" tactics.

The former City of Mexico mayor has been portrayed as "a danger" for Mexico (and its burgeoning middle class) plus having close links with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez who has repeatedly insulted and taunted President Fox.

With the issue of Mexico's foreign policy hot on the table analysts are not ruling out that Calderon on Tuesday may resume his accusations about the alleged links between Lopez Obrador and Chavez, whom he has referred to as "populists and demagogues."

So this evening expect a lot o abusive language regarding alleged links with President Chavez, whose candidate suffered a setback last Sunday in Peru, and much praise and hope for the Mexican football team, among the eight favourites of the World Cup in Germany.