Bush Congratulates Winner of Mexico Vote
By Associated Press
34 minutes ago


Felipe Calderon, the possible winner of the July 2 ...
WASHINGTON - President Bush congratulated Felipe Calderon on Friday on winning Mexico's disputed presidential race.

Bush also spoke with outgoing Mexican President Vicente Fox, praising his "legacy as the leader of Mexico," White House spokesman Tony Snow said. Bush said he hoped to see Fox again before he leaves office Dec. 1.

Both calls, which Snow described as "very, very brief," were placed from Air Force One as Bush flew back to Washington from Illinois.

From Fox's ruling National Action Party, Calderon won the official count Thursday. But his leftist rival, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, refused to concede and said he'd fight the results in court. He blamed fraud for his narrow loss in the vote count.

Luis Carlos Ugalde, president of the Federal Electoral Institute, confirmed Calderon as the winner Thursday night, several hours after the final vote count was released. But the official declaration of a president-elect must come from the Federal Electoral Tribunal, which has until Sept. 6 to announce.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.