A Times Editorial

Mexico's future

Mexico's president-elect Vicente Fox must work quickly to build momentum for economic and political reforms for a true democracy.

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 5, 2000

Breaking the Institutional Revolutionary Party's 71-year stranglehold on central power was a necessary step in Mexico's struggle to establish a true democracy. However, the victory of president-elect Vicente Fox will have little real significance if Fox and his National Action Party fail to entrench the political and economic reforms that are crucial to Mexico's long-term stability.

Fox is an unlikely reformer. The tough-talking former Coca-Cola executive ran a slick -- and often vulgar -- campaign that was short on specifics. His short tenure as governor of the state of Guanajuato offers few clues about how he will perform as president, and his vague promises of government efficiency and economic progress were barely distinguishable from those of PRI candidate Francisco Labastida. Unlike opposition candidate Cuauhtemoc Cardenas, who is widely believed to have been cheated out of the 1988 presidential election, Fox generally avoided populist rhetoric that might threaten Mexico's economic elite and trading partners in the United States and elsewhere.

Still, Fox can make an important contribution to Mexican democracy simply by living up to the example set by outgoing President Ernesto Zedillo. Many other presidents had promised democratic reforms, but Zedillo was the first to fully deliver. He was the first PRI leader in decades to pass up the chance to hand-pick his successor. And with other PRI officials fighting him along the way, he took the steps necessary to ensure that Sunday's election would be truly free and fair.

An early measure of Fox's commitment to political reform will come from the selection of a new Cabinet. Fox promised that his inner circle will include experts from all the major parties, but he faces pressure within PAN to place political loyalty above inclusiveness and expertise in building his new government.

Mexico can't afford six more years of cronyism and corruption. Millions of impoverished Mexicans are still waiting to see the benefits of a strengthening economy, and the country's choked environment and crumbling education system need immediate attention. Fox has a chance to parlay the national euphoria surrounding his historic election into positive momentum for reform, but he needs to act quickly to show Mexicans that democracy's advantages over one-party rule are tangible and not just theoretical.

© St. Petersburg Times. All rights reserved.