The death of Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano, founder of the Partido de la Revolución Democrática (PRD) and a leading figure of the Mexican left, prompted immediate political reactions. One of the most personal came from José Ramón López Beltrán, eldest son of former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who shared a message intertwining family memory with the trajectory of the Michoacán-born engineer, whose death was reported on the night of October 28.
- Family reaction: José Ramón López Beltrán recalled that his first political memory was his father telling him he would vote for Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas in 1988.
- Historical context: The message refers to the 1988 presidential election and the Éxodo por la Democracia, a mobilization that followed those elections.
- Personal bond: López Beltrán said he met Cárdenas as a child and that in 2000 he gave him his first vote for president.
A memory that begins in 1988
In his message, López Beltrán traced the origin of his interest in politics to the 1988 presidential race, when Cárdenas led an opposition current against the PRI regime.
“Mi primer recuerdo de la política es el de mi papá diciéndome que iba a votar por Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano”, escribió José Ramón López Beltrán.
The former president's son added that he later watched as, in his view, the election that year was stolen and how the engineer chose to press on with his project, which—according to his account—awakened consciences in the country. With those words he highlighted the Michoacán politician's influence both on his family and on the national democratic movement.
From the Éxodo por la Democracia to the Zócalo
López Beltrán said he met Cárdenas as a child, during the Éxodo por la Democracia, the mobilization that traveled through various regions of the country after the 1988 election. He recalled that their first encounter took place in Veracruz and that he later saw him again in Tabasco, at meetings held at his home and during Cárdenas's campaign closing rally in the Zócalo of Mexico City.
The political relationship between López Obrador and Cárdenas dates back to the years when both took part in opposition movements. The engineer was a presidential candidate in 1988, 1994 and 2000, and in 1997 he won the first election for head of government of what was then the Federal District.
The first vote and the engineer's legacy
José Ramón López Beltrán recounted that he cast his first ballot in 2000, when he backed Cárdenas for the presidency and his father for head of government of what was then the Federal District.
“En el 2000 voté por primera vez por él para presidente y por mi papá para jefe de gobierno”, señala en el mensaje publicado tras la muerte del político.
Cárdenas's death triggered a wave of condolences among Mexican political figures. One of the first to speak out was former president López Obrador, who via social media sent his condolences to the engineer's family, friends and colleagues, and maintained that he left behind teachings and ideals that remain alive.
“Sin el Ingeniero, otra sería la realidad política de México”, destacó AMLO. “Fue íntegro, honesto y digno heredero del general Lázaro Cárdenas Del Río”, agregó.
The tributes to Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas underscore the weight his figure still carries in the memory of the Mexican left. His participation in three presidential contests and his role in founding the PRD place him as a central actor in the country's political transition. José Ramón López Beltrán's message, beyond mourning, reveals how the engineer's trajectory became intertwined with the López Obrador family history and with the political formation of a generation that saw him as an opposition reference.