International press covers "vote buying" by PRI party

Aristegui Noticias July 10, 2012

A wide range of international media outlets, have turned their eyes towards México after the presidential election of the first of July. The main topic is the accusations of large scale vote buying by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and the massive protests that this issue have generated.

The alleged hand out of pre-paid cash cards for the groceries chain Soriana and the accusations of vote buying by the PRI party to aid their presidential candidate, Enrique Peña Nieto, has been widely reported by the international press.

Representatives of the company, have said that the company does not participate in the electoral process, and that the allegations are "false and made up". On their side, PRI representatives have denied any wrong doing and challenge the accusations of buying the peoples votes in favor of Peña.

After the jump, we present a list of various articles from the international press that have reported on this issue.

Washington Post (United States): Reports of gift card payments feed growing accusations of vote-buying in Mexico’s election

Thousands of people rushed to stores Tuesday to redeem pre-paid gift cards they said were given to them previously by the party that won Mexico’s presidency, inflaming accusations that the weekend election was marred by widespread vote-buying.

Ottawa Citizen (Canada): Old-style politics returns to Mexico

Twelve years after Mexicans voted in democratic elections to turf out the corrupt, authoritarian Institutional Revolutionary Party (the PRI), Enrique Peña Nieto, the PRI candidate, is now poised to return to the Mexican White House. On Friday, the Mexican Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) announced the final results of the election held July 1, which confirmed Peña Nieto in first place with 38.21 per cent of the vote, leading the next candidate, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, by 6.62 per cent.

Bloomberg (United States): Pena Nieto Rejects Vote-Buying Charges After Stores Shuttered

Mexico’s incoming president Enrique Pena Nieto pushed back against charges that his party paid for votes as authorities finish a recount confirming his victory.

Al Jazeera (Qatar): Thousands protest Mexico’s president-elect

Thousands of protesters marched through the Mexican capital on Saturday against president-elect Enrique Pena Nieto, accusing him of buying votes and paying off television networks for support.

Huffington Post (United States): Thousands in Tijuana March Against Peña Nieto

In nationwide demonstrations on Saturday, tens of thousands of Mexicans peacefully took to the streets in protest of President-elect Enrique Peña Nieto, accusing his party, the PRI, of corruption and vote-buying. In Mexico City, a reported 50,000 people participated in the “MegaMarcha,” while a simultaneous demonstration in Tijuana had an estimated 10,000 participants. Additional marches occurred throughout many Mexican states, including Oaxaca, Monterrey, Chihuahua, Jalisco, and Guadalajara, as well as in U.S cities like Los Angeles and Austin.

The Guardian (United Kingdom): Mexico elections: claims of dirty tricks cast shadow over Peña Nieto’s victory

Growing allegations of systematic vote-buying and other irregularities are casting a shadow over Enrique Peña Nieto’s still unconfirmed victory in Mexico’s presidential election.

France 24 (France): Irregularities cast doubt over Mexican poll

Mexico’s Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) began recounting Thursday more than half of the ballot boxes used in the country`s presidential poll, citing inconsistencies in vote tallies. But a growing number of people insist the July 1 election was plagued by more serious problems and are refusing to accept official results.

New Zealand Heraldn (New Zealand): Gift-card handout sparks election row in Mexico

Thousands of people rushed to stores yesterday to redeem pre-paid gift cards they said were given to them by the party that won Mexico’s presidency, inflaming accusations that the weekend election was marred by widespread vote-buying.

The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia): Vote-buying allegation leads to huge recount

PRI activists allegedly handed out prepaid gift cards from the grocery chain Soriana to voters in some districts, according to amateur videos broadcast on Mexican TV on Wednesday.

CNN (United States): Vote-buying allegations persist after Mexican election

More than a week after Mexico’s presidential election, the candidate who authorities describe as the runner-up said a partial recount was not enough to erase his doubts about the vote.

AFP (France): Mexico’s Pena Nieto faces vote-buying claims

Enrique Pena Nieto decisively won Mexico’s presidential vote, a final official tally issued Friday showed, but he must still overcome legal challenges — including claims he “bought” the election.

Fox News (United States): Mexican left: PRI governors orchestrated vote-buying

Mexico’s political left said several state governors, mostly members of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, were behind a massive vote-buying scheme in last Sunday’s general election.

Kuwait Times (Kuwait): Marchers claim Nieto ‘bought’ victory – Mass Mexico City protest against Pena Nieto win

Tens of thousands of demonstrators marched through Mexico City Saturday against the presidential election win of Enrique Pena Nieto, accusing him and his party of widespread vote-buying. The marchers claim Pena Nieto, from the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), “bought” his way to victory by handing out gift cards and securing paid favorable media coverage from the country’s two main TV networks. “Get out Pena, Mexico without the PRI!” the protesters chanted as the massive crowd made its way down the Paseo de la Reforma-a main thoroughfare in the capital-to the Zocalo, the city’s giant downtown square.

Source: Aristegui Noticias