By RICARDO CASTILLO

The announcement of the election of Federal Deputy Mario Delgado Carrillo on Friday, Oct. 23, as president of the governing National Regeneration Movement (Morena) political party brought to an end the internal conflict that has beleaguered Morena for more than a year.

National Electoral Institute (INE) Councilor Claudia Zavala made the official announcement and should be turning in the results soon to the Electoral Tribunal, which will make it official.

Opposing candidate Federal Deputy Porfirio Muñoz Ledo, who protested over the outcome of the poll carried out by three private pollsters, still has four days to challenge the outcome. Muñoz Ledo decried the result on Twitter but it is not yet known whether he will officially challenge it. The doubt remains since Porfirio, as everyone knows Deputy Muñoz Ledo, has not yet conceded to Delgado.

According to the pollsters, Delgado had a 58.6 majority over Muñoz Ledo’s 41.4, a 17.2 percent difference.

Delgado’s victory also marks the real beginning of the 2021 electoral fray in what INE officials tout as “the largest election in the history of Mexico.” At stake will be 21,368 electoral posts, including 15 elections for governor and the renewal of the 500 seats at the Chamber of Deputies.

What the new Morena leader, until now majority whip at the Chamber of Deputies, is expecting is a task of humongous proportions, including the selection of the main candidates and the now-inevitable conversion of Morena from a “movement” to a consolidated political party. Also, he will have to straighten up the partisan organization in the 32 states of the nation.

And, of course, he will need to pacify all the different still-disgruntled candidates and supporters who vied for the presidency. Delgado will serve as party president until Aug. 31, 2023. He has already made a call to fellow Morena members to fall in behind him to present a united front in the midterm elections.

To give you an idea of how the “anxious horses in the race” are behaving, just last week, National Security and Protection Secretary Alfonso Durazo (the civilian head of the National Guard) turned in his resignation to Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) to enlist as a candidacy hopeful for the Sonora state governor election. Actually, he is the first to throw his hat into the ring. The president didn’t want him to go, but finally accepted. Durazo will remain at his current post through Oct. 31.

This same thing is happening in the contending 10 political parties, and, over the next few weeks, we will be seeing the announcement of many a hopeful. The parties will have to have a candidate for each of the electoral posts at stake.

Actual stumping by all involved candidates will start the first week of April and will last trough Friday, June 3. The election itself will be held on Sunday, June 6.

The INE has already published a calendar as to how parties can register intraparty partnerships backing a specific candidate.

Again, what everyone was waiting for was for Morena to settle as to who is going to lead it through the electoral year to come. That is finally done.

Now, the electoral race is on.

…Oct. 26, 2020