| Vicente Fox | |
|---|---|
| 55th President of Mexico | |
| In office December 1, 2000 – November 30, 2006 |
|
| Preceded by | Ernesto Zedillo |
| Succeeded by | Felipe Calderón |
| Governor of Guanajuato | |
| In office September 25, 1995 – September 25, 1999 |
|
| Preceded by | Carlos Medina Plascencia |
| Succeeded by | Ramón Martín Huerta |
| Co-President of Centrist Democrat International along side Pier Ferdinando Casini |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2006 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 2, 1942 San Francisco del Rincon, Guanajuato, Mexico |
| Political party | National Action Party (PAN) |
| Spouse(s) | Lilian de la Concha (divorced) Marta Sahagún |
| Alma mater | Universidad Iberoamericana |
| Occupation | Businessman; Politician |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Vicente Fox Quesada (Spanish pronunciation: [biˈsente ˈfoks keˈsaða]; born July 2, 1942) is a Mexican former politician who served as President of Mexico from 1 December 2000 to 30 November 2006 and currently serves as co-President of the Centrist Democrat International, an international organization of Christian democratic political parties.[1]
Fox was elected President of Mexico in the 2000 presidential election, a historically significant election that made him the first president elected from an opposition party since Francisco I. Madero in 1910 and the first one in 71 years to defeat, with 42 percent of the vote, the then-dominant Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).[2]
After serving as president of Mexico for six years, President Fox returned to his home state of Guanajuato, where he resides with his wife and family. Since leaving the presidency, Vicente Fox has been involved in public speaking and the construction of the Vicente Fox Center of Studies, Library and Museum.[3]
Fox is a member of the Club of Madrid,[4] an independent non-profit organization composed of 81 democratic former Presidents and Prime Ministers from 57 different countries.
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Vicente Fox was born in Guanajuato on July 2, 1942, the second of nine children. His father was José Luis Fox Pont, a Mexican citizen[5] and his mother Mercedes Quesada Etxaide, was Basque from San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa, Spain. Fox's paternal grandfather was born Joseph Louis Fuchs in Cincinnati, Ohio, the son of Catholic immigrants Louis Fuchs and Catherina Elisabetha Flach of Strasbourg, now in France. The "Fox" surname was changed from the German "Fuchs" during the 1870s.[6]
Fox spent his childhood and adolescence at the family ranch in San Francisco del Rincón in Guanajuato. He moved to Mexico City to attend the Universidad Iberoamericana and received a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration in 1964. He earned his diploma in Top Management Skills from the Harvard Business School in the United States in 1974.[7]
In 1964, Fox went to work for the Coca-Cola Company where he started as a route supervisor, and he drove a delivery truck. He quickly rose in the company to become the supervisor of Coca-Cola's operations in Mexico, and later in all of Latin America. As the President of Coca Cola Mexico, Fox helped Coca-Cola become Mexico's top-selling soft drink, increasing Coca-Cola's sales by almost 50%.[8]
Vicente Fox married a receptionist at Coca-Cola, Lilian de la Concha. They adopted four children, Ana Cristina, Vicente, Paulina, and Rodrigo.[9] In 1990, after 20 years of marriage, Lilian filed for and was granted a divorce.[10]
Vicente Fox married for the second time while in office as President. He married Marta María Sahagún Jiménez (until then his spokesperson) on July 2, 2001, the first anniversary of his presidential election and his 59th birthday. For both, this was their second marriage.
After retiring from Coca-Cola, Vicente Fox began to participate in various public activities in Guanajuato, where he created the "Patronato de la Casa Cuna Amigo Daniel", an orphanage. He was the president of the Patronato Loyola, a sponsor of the León campus of the Universidad Iberoamericana, and of the Lux Institute.[11]
With the support of Manuel Clouthier, Vicente Fox joined the Partido Acción Nacional on March 1, 1988. That same year he ran for and was elected to the federal Chamber of Deputies representing the Third Federal District in León, Guanajuato.[11]
After serving in the Chamber of Deputies, Fox sought the governorship in Guanajuato in 1991, but lost to Ramón Aguirre Velázquez of the PRI. Following the election, local discontent was so great that the state Congress appointed Carlos Medina Plascencia of the PAN as interim governor.[12] Four years later, Fox decided to run again, winning by a vote of 2 to 1; thus, he became the new governor.[11]
As governor, Fox promoted government efficiency and transparency. He was one of the first state governors of Mexico to give a clear, public and timely account of the finances of Guanajuato.[13]
Fox pushed for the consolidation of small firms, promoted the sale of goods manufactured in Guanajuato overseas and created a unique system in which micro-credits with no overdue portfolio were granted. Under Fox, the state became the fifth most important Mexican state economy.[13]
On July 7, 1997 (three years before the presidential election of 2000), Vicente Fox decided to run for President of Mexico. In spite of opposition within his party, Fox secured his candidacy representing the Alliance for Change, a political coalition formed by the National Action Party and the Green Ecological Party of Mexico on November 14, 1999.
During the course of his campaign a presidential debate was organized. There was a disagreement between the three main contenders, Fox, Francisco Labastida of the PRI and Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas of the PRD, and some of the arguments were broadcast on national television, notably the one on whether the debate should be held that same day or the following Friday.[14] For minutes, Fox kept repeating the word "Hoy" meaning "today", originating the famous phrase "hoy, hoy, hoy!". The other candidates decided to postpone the debate, but Fox used that day's airtime anyway. At first the action brought criticism to Fox, but it soon backfired against his opponents when Fox started using his new phrase to gain new supporters as he campaigned for a better future "today".
Fox's primary voting bloc were the Criollo and Mestizo populace of Northern and Central Mexico. During the presidential debate his main opponent, Francisco Labastida, claimed in a nationally televised debate that Vicente Fox had repeatedly called him a "sissy" and a "cross-dresser".[15] Fox's campaign slogans were "¡Ya!" ("Right now!"), "Ya ganamos" ("We've already won") and "Vota Alianza por el Cambio" meaning "Vote for Alliance for Change".
Amigos de Fox ("Friends of Fox") was a non-profit fund raising group establishe by Denise Montaño that was instrumental in getting Vicente Fox elected President of Mexico. The phrase was also used as a campaign slogan referring to the millions of people supporting Fox in the 2000 presidential elections.[16]
In 2003, money-laundering charges were lodged against the fund raising group, but were dropped shortly before the July 2003 mid-term elections.[17]
On July 2, 2000, (Fox's 58th birthday) he won the presidential election with 43% (15,989,636 votes) of the popular vote, followed by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) candidate Francisco Labastida with 36% (13,579,718 votes), and Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD) with 17% (6,256,780 votes). Vicente Fox declared victory that same night, a victory which was ratified by President Zedillo. After the final results were announced, President-elect Vicente Fox met with thousands of supporters at the Angel of Independence monument in Mexico City, to address his supporters and celebrate his victory. His opponents conceded the election later that night.
President-elect Vicente Fox received an enormous amount of media coverage, as well as many congratulating messages and phone calls from world leaders including then President of the United States, Bill Clinton.
Fox took office as president on December 1, 2000, marking the first time in Mexico's history that an incumbent government peacefully surrendered power to an elected member of the opposition.
During his campaign for president, Vicente Fox became well known for his unique cowboy style and popular charisma. As speaker, Fox usually gathered big crowds in early years of his presidency.[18]
At six foot five, President Fox easily stood out in most crowds, and is believed to be one of the tallest presidents in Mexican history.[19] After his inauguration, President Fox usually only wore suits for formal occasions, opting to wear his signature boots and jeans throughout his many visits around Mexico.[20]
When President Fox welcomed U.S. President George W. Bush to his ranch in Guanajuato, both presidents were wearing Fox’s signature black cowboy boots, prompting the Wall Street Journal to call it “The Boot Summit”.[21]
After leaving office in December 2006, Fox has maintained himself in the public eye by speaking in countries such as Nigeria, Canada and the United States about topics such as the controversial 2006 election and the Iraq War. In Mexico, Fox's busy post-presidency has caused much criticism because traditionally former Presidents in Mexico are expected to stay out of the public/political spotlight. Nevertheless, Fox stated:
| “ | There is no reason to hold to the anti-democratic rules of those who still live in the authoritarian past…now that Mexico is a democracy, every citizen has the right to express himself, even a former president.[30] | ” |
In addition, President Fox has expressed interest in campaigning for PAN candidates in future Mexican elections, an action that would make him the first former president in many decades to do so. Given that President Fox is still well-liked and left office with approval ratings looming 70%, many in Mexico are wondering if his support could result in candidates being elected.[31]
Fox's autobiography, entitled Revolution of Hope: The Life, Faith and Dreams of a Mexican President, was released in September 2007, only in English, and only in the United States.[32] To promote its release, Fox toured many U.S. cities to do book-signings and interviews with U.S. media. During his tour, however, he faced protests from Mexican immigrants who accused him of actions that forced them to emigrate and find jobs in the United States.[33] He faced the subject several times during interviews, such as one held with Fox News's Bill O'Reilly, who questioned him about the massive illegal immigration problem of Mexicans into the United States.[34] Finally, during an interview with Telemundo's Rubén Luengas, the interviewer asked Fox about allegations concerning some properties of Vicente Fox's wife, Martha Sahagún. After Fox explained the situation he asked the interviewer not to make false accusations and to prove what he was saying. Luengas said "I'm telling you in your face, I'm not a liar". After this Fox walked out of the studio, calling the interviewer a 'liar', 'vulgar', and 'stupid'.[35] Upon the book's release, many were surprised to read several excerpts wherein Fox was highly critical of United States President, George W. Bush, considered by many to be a close friend of Fox's. For example, Fox wrote that Bush was "the cockiest guy I have ever met in my life," and claimed that he was surprised that Bush had ever made it to the White House. Later, in an interview with Larry King, Fox explained that this was a misunderstanding; what he meant by calling George W. Bush 'cocky' was to say he was 'confident'.[36] Fox also referred to Bush in his autobiography as a "windshield cowboy", due to Bush's apparent fear of a horse Fox offered him to ride.[37]
On January 12, 2007,[38] over a month after he left office, Vicente Fox announced the construction of a center of studies, library and museum that has been labeled by the US press as Mexico's First Presidential Library.[39][40][41] The project will be a library, museum, a "center for the advancement of democracy", a study center, and a hotel, and it will be completely privately funded.[42][43] It is expected to be a genuine U.S. style presidential library. It will be built in his home state of Guanajuato, in his home town of San Francisco del Rincón.
While museums are abundant throughout the country, it has nothing comparable to a presidential library where personal documents, records, and gifts amassed by a country’s leader are opened to the public. Fox’s library will be modeled after the Bill Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas,[44] which, according to the former President, will allow Mexicans to enjoy, for the first time in Mexico’s history, the liberty to review the documents, images and records that made up his six years as president.[45]
According to the official website, the construction of the Center is in progress and advancing.[46] Final completion of the library is expected by late 2007.
On September 20, 2007, Fox was elected Co-President (along with the re-elected Pier Ferdinando Casini) of the Centrist Democratic International at its leader's meeting in Rome. The CDI is the international organization of political parties that counts Fox's party, the National Action Party, as a member.[47]
In October 2007, an announcement was made in the municipality of Boca del Río, Veracruz, that a 3 meter (10 ft) statue of Vicente Fox was to be erected to honor the former president. This aroused much criticism from the opposition Party of the Democratic Revolution and Mexican media towards Boca del Río's mayor, who is affiliated with the National Action Party, of which Fox is also a member.
The statue was put in place amidst protests on the dawn of October 13, 2007. The inauguration was to have been held on October 14, 2007. Some hours after the installation, however, a crowd of about 100 people brought the statue down with a rope, damaging it. The statue was later put back in place for the inauguration, then taken away for repairs.[48]
PAN members accused Veracruz's governor, Fidel Herrera Beltrán, of ordering the attack on the statue, while Fox called him "intolerant." Some sources in the media considered that the installation of the statue was inappropriate, since former President Fox was facing allegations relating to an illicit enrichment scandal.
Many of the protesters were members of the center-left Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which governed Mexico for much of the 20th century, until Fox (of the conservative National Action Party [PAN]) won the 2000 presidential election, ousting the PRI from power.[49]
Schmidt, Samuel. 2000. Mexico encadenado. El legado de Zedillo y los retos de Fox. Mexico D.F.: Colibri
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Ernesto Zedillo |
President of Mexico 2000–2006 |
Succeeded by Felipe Calderón |
| Preceded by unknown |
Co-President of Centrist Democrat International 2006–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Diego Fernández de Cevallos |
PAN presidential candidate 2000 |
Succeeded by Felipe Calderón |
