A very significant development: PRI fissures surface

The carefully groomed yet highly constructed facade of PRI unity ahead of 2012 is cracking, and most importantly, in a highly public manner: Labastida openly attacks the PRI leadership.

Francisco Labastida Ochoa is no minor person in PRI - senator, presidential candidate in 2000, and very close to Manlio Fabio Beltrones, who also at least appears to be seeking the PRI nomination for 2012. 

* He argues the party presidency of Humberto Moreira is damaging the unity of the party

* He argues the PRI's alliance with the discredited Elba Esther Gordillo is taking away as many votes as it is adding for the party. 

Also, according to the rumor mil, in Mexico City Beatriz Paredes is very unhappy with the decision by Moreira to simply hand over a senate candidacy to Jorge Emilio González of the very un-green Green Party, rather than to reserve it for a PRI legislator.

Many PRI bigshots point out that the PVEM (Green Party) and PANAL (party of Gordillo) are getting far too many safe seats in return for backing the PRI's presidential nominee - which seems a very fair point.

For those of us who see the New PRI as nothing but the same old authoritarian old PRI and fear its return, a split in the PRI is highly desirable.

PRI split over to seek an alliance with Elba Esther Gordillo for 2012

While some, like Veracruz Governor  Javier Duarte, sing her praise, other big-shot priistas openly come out against the powerful  Elba Esther Gordillo and her SNTE teacher union and PANAL party-for-hire, and reject an alliance with her for 2012. A couple of days ago, former presidential candidate  Francisco Labastida Ochoa spoke out against negotiating with Gordillo.

Now, former PRI president (the first-ever woman party president in Mexico) and current senator, María de los Ángeles Moreno, similarly said PRI shouldn't ally with Gordillo.

(PAN senator Santiago Creel, for his part, said that furthering "the human well being does not mean being allied with Elba Esther Gordillo.")


Given the mutual embrace of Gordillo and Enrique Peña Nieto, are we seeing a PRI split over the Gordillo alliance?

A historic day in Sinaloa: Malova assumes as governor on the first day of 2011

It's a historic day in Sinaloa: 82 decades of PRI hegemony ended today with the assumption of Mario López Valdez, better known as "Malova," as governor.

True, and lest we forget Malova is an ex-priìsta who remains close to PRI´s 2000 presidential candidate, Francisco Labastida, a fellow sinaloense, but his assumption of power nonetheless represents a significant break with the old PRI structures that have maintained control of the state since 1929. This was only possible due to a very broad opposition alliance led by PAN and the PRD.

Here´s a useful interview El Universal made with Malova a couple of days back.