Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he had sought to promote unity within the ruling National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) during a dinner on Monday evening attended by the party's main contenders to succeed him.
MORENA is due to pick its presidential candidate in the coming months, and Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard has been urging the party to ensure there is a level playing field for the contest, helping to feed speculation about possible splits.
Ebrard is one of the leading contenders to succeed Lopez Obrador, though most recent polling has tended to give Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum a slight edge in the race.
Lopez Obrador said Ebrard, Sheinbaum and Interior Minister Adan Augusto Lopez, another presidential hopeful, were at the dinner, where MORENA leaders congratulated party stalwart Delfina Gomez for winning the State of Mexico's gubernatorial election on Sunday.
"And we also met to maintain unity, so that there aren't divisions," the leftist president told reporters.
MORENA is strongly favored to win the 2024 presidential election, polls show. Under Mexican law, presidents may only serve a single six-year term.
Lopez Obrador said he could not go into detail about discussions during the dinner, but noted that he had made a pledge not to "tip the scales in favor of anyone" in the selection process.
(Reporting by Dave Graham; Editing by Isabel Woodford and Paul Simao)
