Calderon calls for unity following elections

Mexico’s main leftist candidate plans to challenge the presidential vote tally at tens of thousands of polling places, and also will allege that attack ads by the apparently victorious conservative were illegally harsh, a top adviser said today.

The comments came a day after ruling-party candidate Felipe Calderon, who came out almost 244,000 votes ahead in yesterday’s official count, urged Mexicans to leave the bitter election campaign behind and work for unity.

He doesn’t appear to have much choice. If courts back the official results of the vote count finished yesterday, Calderon could take office with a narrow mandate from the people, a divided Congress and millions of angry voters who believe he stole the election from his leftist rival.

The candidate from President Vicente Fox’s National Action Party topped the official count with 15 million votes, or 35.89% of the 41.8 million cast, while former Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador received 14.8 million, or 35.31%.

But the results must be certified by Mexico’s Federal Electoral Tribunal, which will hear challenges by Lopez Obrador’s Democratic Revolution Party.

Aide Claudia Sheinbaum said the campaign was concentrating its appeal on about 50,000 polling places where not all of the ballots distributed were accounted for, as well as on the angry rhetoric of the campaign.

Calderon surged in the polls after running ads comparing Lopez Obrador to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Electoral officials later banned the ads for violating election laws.

Political parties have until early next week to file formal complaints to the seven-judge court that can order investigations of the evidence, change the official results and even order new elections.

It has thrown out two gubernatorial elections but has never judged such a tight presidential race.

The tribunal has until September 6 to certify the presidential winner, and its decision is final.

The new president takes office on December 1.

With a margin of victory of fewer than 244,000 votes, Calderon appeared to take pains not to gloat over his apparent victory, instead emphasising his respect for his adversaries and his intention to work for all Mexicans, including the millions who voted for his rivals in Mexico’s closest election in history.

“Taking into account the diverse expressions of the people last Sunday, I’m making it my personal duty to take on as my own the wishes and the reasons that motivated millions of citizens to vote for other candidates,” he told giddy supporters gathered to cheer him on at his campaign headquarters last night, his smile evident but restrained.

“For those that voted for me, I ask them that we move forward with the construction of the Mexico we dream of. And for those who didn’t vote for me, I ask you to give me the chance to win your trust. I will do it as president of Mexico.”

Faced with an opposition-dominated Congress, Calderon spoke of building a government of “national unity” – a “coalition government” that would include opposition figures and said he would offer to include Lopez Obrador in his Cabinet.’

Fox also faced a divided Congress, which blocked much of his proposed legislation.

Lopez Obrador blames fraud for his narrow loss in the vote count and denounced election officials for going forward with an official count of poll-workers’ vote tallies, as required by election law, and ignoring his demand for a ballot-by-ballot review.

Lopez Obrador, who has a history of mobilising millions, called on his fervent supporters to fill Mexico City’s main square Saturday in a show of force.

Today there were scattered protests in favour of the leftist candidate - including one in front of the Federal Electoral Institute – but the city was calm.

Rebel leader Subcomandante Marcos, who refused to participate in the elections, agreed with Lopez Obrador that the vote was tainted by fraud and that the leftist candidate had won the election.

But he added in an interview with the Mexico newspaper La Jornada, that his Zapatista movement does not support the former Mexico City mayor.

“We are not friends,” said Marcos, who led a 1994 uprising in southern Chiapas state in the name of democracy, anti-capitalism and Indian rights. “We are enemies of all the political class.”