But, days before López Obrador’s withdrawal must begin, political analysts warn that there are several signs that warn that he will not retire from political activity.
“Even though he is going to Chiapas, he is an actor who will try to be present in public life, either by becoming some sort of honorary president or by exercising his right to disagree with Claudia Sheinbaum, as he has already warned her, by making a decision that he does not like. So, I think that López Obrador is not going to go to the bench,” says Salvador Mora, an academic from the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences at UNAM.
As a six-year term draws to a close, the outgoing president is entering his twilight years, but it has been different with López Obrador. While other former presidents such as Enrique Peña Nieto have been losing ground and giving up space, he remains active, expressing his opinion on the latest reforms, going on tours and in conflict with his commercial partners, the United States and Canada.
“López Obrador is a political animal, so he is not going to give up power, or whatever he can still control. And he has a very strong asset, which is the party itself. Morena is his creation, it is his party, he is the leader of this political force. It seems to me a very difficult scenario to think that he will go to his ranch and stay… sitting in a hammock?, writing his memoirs? We will still see him intervening in politics,” says Luz María Cruz, professor at UNAM and political analyst.
And for them, these are some signs that suggest that López Obrador will remain active in politics, even after October 1, when he hands over the presidential sash to the first female president.
1. Conflict with the US
López Obrador has contributed to making his final days as president, which should have been a transitional period, tense, particularly with his conflict with the representatives of the United States and Canada in the country.
This is a sign that the president will not retire from politics, because if he wanted to do so, his goal would be to leave the country stable.
“If he wanted to retire, he would have to leave a stable country, but with the conflict with the United States and Canada, he shows that he is an actor who is not contained, who does not see that his future is already exhausted. He does not want to leave a strong legacy and wants to become a factor at some point, when they give him an appointment or some position,” says Salvador Mora.
Gustavo López Montiel, a professor at the Monterrey Institute of Technology, believes that the confrontation with the United States shows that the president is reluctant to lose power and will remain active.
“It is a sign of the way he feels he is losing power. The president is eroding and since there is already a date on which he will stop being president, that is why he is trying to show that he is the one who is in charge until the last minute and that after that last minute, he will continue to be in charge,” he says.
“There are a number of elements that indicate that he is losing power, but his reaction to this gives signs that it will not be easy for him to retire.”
Gustavo López Montiel, professor at the Monterrey Institute of Technology.
