The government of Vicente Fox may stall in pressing charges against the popular Mexico City mayor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador. This would affect his chances in next year’s presidential election:
Prosecutors said Friday that they would postpone filing an indictment after the Supreme Court announced that it would consider an appeal by the city council disputing the impeachment vote. Federal prosecutors said they would wait to seek an arrest warrant until they saw the outcome of the appeal.
A spokesman for President Vicente Fox said the government was considering a pardon for the mayor. Later, Fox’s chief spokesman disavowed that statement.
Polls consistently indicate that the mayor is the most likely candidate to succeed Fox in next year’s presidential election. He and his aides said the postponement showed a “lack of seriousness” by federal officials. Aides said they suspected that the government was trying to delay an arrest warrant to make it even harder for López Obrador to meet deadlines that would allow him to compete in the presidential elections.