By IPS Correspondents
MEXICO CITY, May 22 2000 (IPS)

Positive, well-targeted publicity has become the principal weapon of the capital’s government, in the hands of the centre-left Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), as it builds popularity and marches confidently down the electoral road.

The PRD took over the city’s governance in December 1997 after winning the first-ever elections to choose the capital’s authorities. And now its mayoral candidate for the 2000 to 2006 term, Manuel López, is running 10 percentage points ahead of his rivals, according to the latest polls.

Maintaining a constant media presence, organising massive cultural events and developing a website have all been part of the Mexico City government’s strategy under Rosario Robles, who governs one of the world’s largest and most conflict-ridden urban areas.

Robles took office in September 1999 after the elected mayor, Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas, the PRD’s long-time leader, resigned so that he could focus his energies on running for president.

Marketing expert Leticia Paredes told IPS that “good publicity that is well sold” has been one of the keys to the government’s success under Robles, who served as the capital’s Interior secretary until she replaced Cárdenas.

Robles has maintained an image of success – ‘Reforma’ newspaper published a survey that gives her performance a seven on a 10- point scale – and this has been a driving force for the PRD’s new candidate, said political analyst Miguel Angel Granados.

López has a more than 10-point advantage over his rivals from the nationally governing Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) – which headed the capital until 1997 – and the conservative National Action Party (PAN).

The PRI questioned the López candidacy before the courts, arguing that he was born and lived most of his life in the state of Tabasco, on the Gulf of Mexico coast.

Some experts indicated the PRI petition only underscored the party’s fear that it will lose the capital’s mayorship a second time.

On Monday, the judges threw out the PRI’s petition, clearing the way for López to continue his campaign.

Though there are still many problems to be resolved and city officials have made mistakes, the Robles government knew how to “sell” its achievements, minimise its failures and boost its image. Unlike Cárdenas, who maintained his “wooden and distant” style, which did not sit well with the city’s residents.

Electoral law prevents Robles from directly advertising on behalf of the PRD mayoral candidate, but she is helping López with her positive performance, said Martí Batres, the party’s leader in the capital’s Legislative Assembly, where the PRD holds the majority.

But it is not just publicity. The data show that crime in Mexico City has fallen slightly, pollution levels have stabilised and a portion of the police force was reorganised, thus cutting down on corruption.

The capital, which is home to 11 percent of the approximately 58 million voters who can cast a ballot in July for president, parliamentarians and local authorities, is considered by all sides to be a city that is extremely difficult to run.

With 12,000 inhabitants per square km, two million reportedly suffering from mental illness, some 25 crimes committed every hour, thousands of street vendors, lack of clean water, more than 12,000 children living on the streets and more than three million cars, it is a major political challenge.

Mexico City and its surroundings have a population of 20 million and are responsible for 21 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP), 23 percent of its industrial output and 28 percent of all commercial activity.

During her term as mayor, Robles came up against the federal government several times in her demands for a bigger budget and for her charges that the PRD’s predecessors in the city government were corrupt.

Investigations into some criminal cases also pitted her against the powerful Azteca television station, which openly opposes the Mexico City government.

In contrast to what the PRI and PAN say, however, public opinion surveys indicate that the city’s PRD government maintains a positive image and enjoys widespread support for its initiatives.

“I have no doubt that intelligent publicity, which shows a government close to the people with a mayor who is relaxed and friendly, greatly helped the PRD in the capital,” Paredes said.

Robles has not revealed the amount of money her party has spent on publicity, but affirms that it is much less than what the PRI spends at the national or municipal levels.

The PRD’s López promised he would continue the work of his fellow party members in the capital, but announced he would launch a more energetic fight against corruption and provide more assistance to the marginalized social sectors.

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