Surprise, surprise. The chosen one - and emphasis on chosen one - to succeed Enrique Peña Nieto as governor of Mexico State was not Alfredo del Mazo, but rather Eruviel Ávila, mayor of Ecatepec.
It's noteworthy for several reasons: Alfredo del Mazo, the scion of the Atlacomulco dynasty in Mexico State, is far closer to Peña Nieto than Ávila - indeed, as noted earlier, he is almost his double - telegenic, well groomed by the media, from a wealthy background, etc - but the choice of Eruviel Ávila signals very much that Peña Nieto and the PRI realized they needed to move away from this image, instead picking a man who is indeed close to a true rags-to-riches story - his father was a bus driver, and young Eruviel worked as ticket taker on board, then as a class cutter, until achieving a doctorate in law at UNAM, and becoming mayor twice of Ecatepec, the position he just recently stepped down from.
Del Mazo was long tipped the favorite - he is the son of a former governor, grandson of another, and, to add, a cousin of Peña Nieto - but the PRI clearly decided that picking another of the Atlacomulco group would not be worth it - and it certainly takes away from the opposition one strong argument against the PRI nominee.
In any event, it is notable how the dedazo is very much alive in the PRI. One by one the PRI's pre-candidates simply declined - there were no votes, open polls, no primary, nothing - until a "candidate of unity" was simply pronounced. That candidate is Eruviel Ávila, who given his modest background may prove an even tougher candidate to beat than del Mazo.
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