Mexican Presidential candidate Xochitl Galvez Ruiz, right in Yonkers
protestors outside of vist by Xochitl Galvez Ruiz to Yonkers
By Dan Murphy
In June, Mexican voters will elect their next president, and the two leading candidates are women, seeking to become the country’s first female President. Thery are-Xochitl Gálvez, a senator chosen to lead a coalition of three Mexican political parties, and Claudia Sheinbaum, a former Professor and Mayor who is running on the MORENA Party line. The current President Andres Lopez Obrador is also MORENA and is supporting Sheinbaum.
The upcoming Presidential election in Mexico came to Yonkers on Feb. 2 when one of the candidates visited the city at the invitation of the Yonkers Mexican Chamber of Commerce. Xochitl Galvez Ruiz attended a lunch at the Dos Maria Restaurant, 200 New Main Street.
County Legislator Jose Alvarado welcomed Galvez Ruiz to Yonkers and presented her with a proclamation from the Westchester Board of Legislators. About 50 Mexican Americans, and supporters of Galvez-Ruiz attended the lunch.
Outside more than 100 protestors rallied against Galvez Ruiz, who is the nominee from the Broad Front for Mexico party. Galvez Ruiz is the opposition candidate. Incumbent President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is not running for reelection. Claudia Sheinbaum is running on the ruling party MORENA (the National Regeneration Movement) line.
Polls have Sheinbaum ahead of Galvez Ruiz by at least 10 points. A third candidate is well behind both women, Jorge Álvarez Máynez
Yonkers police formed a perimeter outside the restaurant to protect Galvez Ruiz when she left the lunch. What was most notable was the number of protestors who showed up for an event that very few in the media were made aware of, and also the anger and intense opposition they had to Galvez Ruiz.
Signs and chants of “disgrace”, “rat” and “corrupt” met Galvez Ruiz as she left the event and got into a van and quickly departed.
The Yonkers Voice has video from the event inside of Dos Maria, and The Yonkers Ledger wrote a story on the visit. We can find no other media coverage of this event.
Millions of Mexicans living abroad can vote in the upcoming Presidential election, and some votes can be cast over a cell phone. With a large Mexican-American community, we hope to report more on the upcoming election in Mexico.
Fears of violence in the upcoming Presidential election have many Mexican American concerned about who the next President will be. On Feb. 27, two candidates for mayor in the Maravatio were shot and killed. Both candidates were running against each other, as members of the National Action Party and Morena. They were shot and killed hours apart. Many put the blame for the violence on the drug cartels of Mexico.
More in the weeks to come. Email us at dmurphy@risingmediagroup.com
