Mexico court upholds ruling against presidential candidate

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s federal Electoral Tribunal has upheld a finding of campaign irregularities by independent presidential candidate Jaime Rodriguez.

The court on Wednesday also unanimously confirmed a fine of 739,000 pesos (more than $37,000) that was levied against Rodriguez in May by the country’s National Electoral Institute.

Rodriguez is on leave as governor of Nuevo Leon state while he runs as one of four candidates in the July 1 election. He is last in the polls.

The court said Rodriguez received prohibited help from state agencies, which had hundreds of employees gather the petition signatures he needed to qualify for the ballot. The court also confirmed a finding that he received banned contributions from businesses.

Rodriguez previously accused electoral officials of targeting his independent candidacy to protect the major established political parties.