Blog entries

Ballots have closed in what could be the election with largest voter turnout in Mexico’s democratic history. In the state of Nuevo León, the Comisión Estatal Electoral (State Electoral Commission) reported that they registered 65 percent of the voter list. Milenio TV, BCG-Excelsior, GEA-ISA and TV Azteca exit polls report that Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) … Read more

Mexico´s Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) began the day with a salute and honors to the Mexican flag before the start of an extraordinary session. Mexicans across the country began voting at 8:00 am. If all goes according to plan, the country will have a president-elect by night´s end along with 500 new deputies and senators, … Read more

Today’s Mercosur presidential meeting, in Mendoza, Argentina, is getting rather more international attention than it likely anticipated.  Previously expected to be little more than tussling over tariffs and a perfunctory discussion of fiscal woes in Europe, the focus now will be Fernando Lugo’s sudden removal from the Paraguayan presidency last Friday. Although Paraguay claimed to … Read more

Never a dull moment just days before Mexico´s presidential poll on July 1.  Two days after candidates concluded campaigning, a number of allegations, counter allegations, false arrests, accusations, and finger-pointing overwhelm already tried and tired campaigners.  Making matters worse is intrigue and possible underhandedness encircling the Institutional Revolutionary Party’s (PRI) candidate, Enrique Peña Nieto, whose … Read more

Silver mining company Tahoe Resources Inc.’s shares dropped yesterday following reports that Guatemalan President Otto Pérez Molina is considering reforms to 55 articles of the Constitution, including one reform that would allow the government to seize up to 40 percent stake in new mining projects in the country. Shareholders of Tahoe Resources, which is headquartered … Read more

Ya ha hecho eco en distintas oportunidades el poder que tiene la sociedad civil en la transformación de las decisiones políticas. Indignados en Egipto, España, Estados Unidos y México han sido el ejemplo claro de ciudadanos inconformes que de manera masiva toman las calles y protestan por aquellas desventuras que sus gobiernos emprenden. El resultado … Read more

Soon after passage of the United States’ health care reform act, I wrote a charticle for Americas Quarterly describing the implementation of the law. Today the Supreme Court upheld the insurance reforms of the  Affordable Care Act in their entirety.  This means that the U.S. now in fact joins some of the other countries in … Read more

Local polls published Wednesday report that Mexican presidential candidate Enrique Peña Nieto has a lead of between 10 and 17 percentage points over his opponents. An El Universal poll released yesterday shows Peña Nieto of the opposition Partido Revolucionario Institucional (Institutional Revolutionary Party—PRI) with 41.2 percent of the popular vote, up 4.2 percentage points from … Read more

Dear Subscribers: In anticipation of the relaunch of AS/COA Online, the Weekly Roundup will take a summer break. Look for a revamped version of the Roundup by Fall 2012. Paraguay’s Presidential Impeachment Causes Outcry On June 22, Paraguay’s Congress impeached President Fernando Lugo after a land conflict earlier in the month that left 17 dead. Lugo … Read more

#YoSoy132 has been called many things: “the voice of a new generation;” “the Mexican Spring;” and “young people manipulated by the PRD [Partido de la Revolución Democrática, or Party of the Democratic Revolution]” are just a few. Whatever its true nature, this youth movement has left a new mark on electoral processes in Mexico—one which … Read more

Yesterday the Argentine government announced it would suspend the Acuerdo de Complementación Económica (Economic Complementation Agreement, also known as ACE-55) with Mexico for three years, discontinuing tariff preferences in the automotive sector for the latter. The agreement was suspended following Brazil and Mexico’s agreement in March of this year to limit their trade in automobiles … Read more

Following the Supreme Court’s decision on Monday to strike down three of four SB 1070 provisions being challenged by the federal government, many in the U.S. Hispanic community breathed a sigh of relief while expressing uncertainty and concern over the “show me your papers” provision that was left intact. Section 2(B) requires state and local … Read more

In a 5-3 decision today, the Supreme Court issued its long awaited opinion on Arizona’s controversial SB 1070 bill. The ruling, with the majority opinion written by Justice Anthony Kennedy (a nominee of former President Ronald Reagan), was a partial victory for the rights of immigrants and for the administration of President Barack Obama which … Read more

Top stories this week are likely to include: effect of Fernando Lugo’s impeachment; Supreme Court verdict on Arizona’s immigration law; Mexico elects a new government; Julian Assange’s asylum request to Ecuador; and Mercosur summit in Argentina. Backlash to Lugo’s Ouster: After former Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo was impeached last Friday by the opposition-dominated legislature in … Read more

Chile’s proverbial education debate has this taken a new turn this week after a seven-month investigation revealed that a number of universities are illegally operating as profit-oriented businesses. According to a report conducted by a special investigation committee, eight universities violated anti-profiteering laws amidst findings of increased salaries among executives, circulation of finances between companies … Read more