Mexican Election

To the Point

Mexican Election

Clean

Published on Jul 6, 2006, 12:00:00 AM
Total time: 00:50:34

Episode Description
It's a vote too close to call, with contested ballots and left versus right. It's not Florida, 2000, but Mexico, 2006. With more than 99% of the vote counted, it appears that Harvard-educated Felipe Calder--n, of President Vicente Fox's conservative PAN Party, has won Mexico's cliffhanger presidential election. Supporters of Andres Manuel L--pez Obrador were weeping in the streets and the leftist rival has vowed to challenge the count in court. How will Mexico cope with the aftermath of a bitterly contested election? Will the new president be able to govern effectively? How will the election affect the divide between rich and poor? What will it mean for Mexico's relations with the US? Sara Terry guest hosts. Making News: New York Supreme Court Upholds State Gay Marriage BanThe New York State Supreme Court has rejected a challenge to the state's ban on gay marriage. The judges' narrowly-divided decision said the state's constitution "does not compel recognition of marriages between members of the same sex." Also today, Georgia's State Supreme Court upheld that state's ban on gay marriage. Anemona Hartocollis covers the courts for the New York Times. Reporters Notebook: Destroying Stockpiles of Chemical Weapons in US, RussiaIt's taking much longer and costing far more than expected to destroy thousands of tons of chemical weapons, the second-largest stockpile in the world. In fact, the US Army says it wouldn't even be able to meet a five-year extension of the 2007 deadline, set under a 1997 international treaty. The Russians, who have the largest number of chemical weapons, are facing the same problems. Craig Williams sits on the board of the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation, a co-recipient of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize for the international campaign to ban land mines.
More about To the Point

A monthly reality-check on the issues Americans care about most. Host Warren Olney draws on his decades of experience to explore the people and issues shaping – and disrupting - our world. How did everything change so fast? Where are we headed? The conversations are informal, edgy and always informative. If Warren's asking, you want to know the answer.