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The Party of the Democratic Revolution (in Spanish: Partido de la Revolución Democrática, PRD) is one of the three largest political parties in Mexico. Founded in Mexico City on May 5, 1989 by Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano, Heberto Castillo, Gilberto Rincón Gallardo, and other leading left-wing politicians, it was proclaimed to be the party of the 6 de julio (July 6), referring to the date of Mexico's 1988 presidential election. On that date, it is alleged that Cárdenas, the candidate of a coalition of center-left parties (the Frente Democrático Nacional) won the election but was denied victory by fraudulent means. (Victory was instead given to the PRI candidate, Carlos Salinas de Gortari.)
The party traces its pedigree to the Partido Comunista de Mexico (PCM, the Communist Party of Mexico), Partido Socialista Unificado de Mexico (PSUM, the Unified Socialist Party of Mexico), and the Partido Mexicano Socialista (PMS, the Mexican Socialist Party). The PMS donated its registry within the Federal Electoral Commission (CFE) to enable the new party to be established. A large number of defectors from the PRI also swelled the PRD's ranks.
The PRD has a strong electoral presence in central and southern Mexico. The party has won gubernatorial races in several states including Chiapas, Michoacán, Zacatecas, Baja California Sur and the Federal District (Mexico City) which has kept since the city was allowed to elect local authorities in 1997. In the 2003 local elections, 13 of the Federal District's 16 borough mayors (jefes delegacionales) were elected from among PRD candidates.