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Mexico City's Federal District
The capital's first election for mayor, technically the governor of the Federal District contained within Mexico City's expansive sprawl, is the most closely watched single race in the July 6 elections.
The winner will have a springboard to influence and visibility second only to the president, as chief of one of the world's largest cities, and Mexico's most important.
The mayor will serve a special three-year term as the transition to the new political system is made. After that, the office will be held for six years.
Previously, the mayor was appointed by the president, meaning the dominant Institutional Revolutionary Party held the office unchallenged.
If the PRI now loses the seat, as expected, the party will lose face but won't lose total control. The Federal District's money is allocated by the federal government with the approval of the president, a PRI member.
Polls give a comfortable lead to the center-left Democratic Revolutionary Party's Cuauhtemoc Cardenas Solorzano, son of a former president. The candidate is a former governor of Michoacan. He also ran for president in 1988, and supporters claim he was cheated out of victory.
The PRI is backing Alfredo del Mazo, a former governor and member of the old guard of the ruling party. But as a sign of the party's awareness of the need for change, he was picked not by senior officials but by internal vote.
The center-right National Action Party's candidate is Carlos Castillo Peraza. As party leader, he led the PAN to landmark national victories, but as a candidate he appears to be failing to connect his pro-business agenda to the basic concerns of the city's poor.
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