What 45% of Mexicans Say About Calderón and Drug Trafficking

If last year's presidential election in Mexico were repeated today, President Felipe Calderón would win handily, according to a poll published in Mexico's El Universal.

Today, 45% of those polled say they would vote for the president. This time last year, in a hotly contested election, Calderón won with less than 36% of the vote in a five-way race. He defeated his closest competitor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, by only 230,000 votes.

The close nature of the race fueled López Obrador's claims that the election was rigged. López Obrador staged massive protests and established a "parallel government" whose political clout has steadily waned.

Calderón's popularity is due in part to his efforts to combat drug trafficking in Mexico. Most recently, in a radical and abrupt move, Calderón replaced the federal police chiefs of all 32 Mexican states and the Distrito Federal (Federal District of Mexico City, the capital). The move is designed to weed out "dirty cops" that are abetting drug crime rather than combating it. To regain assignment, the former police chiefs will have to pass toxicology tests, lie detector tests, and receive new training.

Calderón has also spearheaded new initiatives to combat poverty and legislation to protect the environment.

The survey, conducted by Ipsos-Bimsa, polled 826 eligible voters nationwide via personal interview June 21-26. It has a margin of error of 3.9%.

Best Regards,

Suzan Haskins
Editor, Mexico Insider
International Living

P.S. Calderón's administration is working to maintain Mexico's reputation as one of the world's top retirement destinations. A diverse landscape, vibrant culture, and lower cost of living than the U.S. or Europe are only some of the reasons for its popularity. If you'd like to learn more about all Mexico has to offer, join us in Puerto Vallarta September 23-25 for our upcoming Live & Prosper in Mexico seminar. For more information, contact Events@InternationalLiving.com or call 1-866-381-8446 (toll-free in the U.S. and Canada). Sign up before July 23 and get our Early Bird discount.