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St. Olaf to host expert on Mexican politics

By Lauren Fischer '08
October 31, 2006

Roderic Camp, the Philip M. McKenna Professor of the Pacific Rim at Claremont McKenna College, will present "Mexico's Presidential Horserace, Voters, Campaigns and Democratic Transition" at St. Olaf College Thursday, Nov. 2, at 7 p.m. in Holland Hall 501. The free event is sponsored by St. Olaf's Romance Languages, Economics, History and Political Science departments.

"I have in mind the idea of globalization," says Sylvia Carullo, director of Hispanic studies at St. Olaf and the organizer of Camp's visit. "As educators we have a responsibility to bring a global perspective to the St. Olaf and Northfield communities." Carullo also hopes that Camp's presentation might help explain various social or cultural differences between the United States and Mexico.

Camp will present historical background on Mexico before speaking in depth about that nation's recent presidential election. He will talk about the presidential candidates and voter's expectations, and how those expectations might affect the new president, Felipe Calderon, when he takes office in December. Much of Camp's presentation will be tied to a National Science Foundation project on the role of campaigns in Mexican presidential elections.

Camp has committed his life to studying Mexico and its many facets. He has authored numerous articles and books, including Politics in Mexico, The Democratic Transformation (Oxford University Press, 2003) and Mexico's Mandarins, Crafting a Power Elite for the 21st Century (University of California Press, 2002). Camp also has received 23 awards and fellowships, including numerous Fulbright-Hays grants. In addition to his duties at Claremont McKenna he is an adjunct scholar with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-786-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.