Mexican leftist splits with party over alliances

[Judi Lynn]

Feb 20, 7:02 PM EST
Mexican leftist splits with party over alliances

MEXICO CITY (AP) -- The former presidential candidate of Mexico's leading leftist party is temporarily splitting with the group over a possible alliance with conservatives.

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador says he has taken a "temporary leave" from the Democratic Revolution Party, or PRD.

PRD leaders recently decided to hold a referendum on whether to ally with President Felipe Calderon's National Action Party in July's Mexico state governorship vote.

Lopez Obrador contends that Calderon stole the 2006 presidential election by fraud.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/L/LT_MEXICO_POLITICS?SECTION=HOME&SITE=AP&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[social_critic]

1. Lopez Obrador is a Prima Donna

He runs around calling himself president of Mexico and can't accept party leadership decisions unless they are exactly what he wants. If he had won, he would have been another Chavez.