Mexico’s former ruling party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party, which previously ruled the country with a tight grip, has been voted back into power, ABC News is reporting. The party’s candidate, Enrique Pena Nieto, was elected into the presidency after promising a government that will be modern, responsible and open to criticism.

While Nieto’s margin of victory was clear in yesterday’s election, it wasn’t the mandate the party had anticipated. The pre-election polls showed that the 45-year-old candidate at times had the support of more than half of Mexican voters.

Nieto instead won 38 percent of the votes, approximately six to seven points higher than his closest rival, leftist candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. After the polling numbers came in, Nieto immediately began working to win over the two-thirds of the population who didn’t vote for him. Many voters didn’t vote for him, as they rejected his claim that he represented a reformed and repentant party.

During his victory speech, Nieto said “We’re a new generation. There is no return to the past. It’s time to move on from the we are to the Mexico we deserve and that we can be.”

But Lopez Obrador had refused to concede the election to Nieto, saying he wanted to wait for a full count and legal review. He won approximately 32 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results. While Spanish President Mariano Rajoy already recognized Nieto as the winner, Lopez Obrador said “We have information that indicates something different from what they’re saying officially.”

Written by: Karen Benardello