Sociales'' (IEPES). Echeverría would later state that he chose López Portillo to succeed him because, as President, "I was aware that the country's main problem was the financial one", which should be faced by his Secretary of Finance, "who had shared with me the attacks of a reactionary and obtuse private sector, which did not hesitate to place its funds abroad in their eagerness to break me down". Campaign The PPS and the PARM supported López Portillo's candidacy, as they had traditionally done with previous candidates for the PRI. At the time, the opposition party PAN was going through internal conflicts and, for the first time upon its foundation, was unable to nominate a candidate for the 1976 presidential elections. On the other hand, the Mexican Communist Party nominated Valentín Campa as their presidential candidate. At the time, however, this party had no official registry and was not allowed to participate in elections, so Campa's candidacy was not officially recognized and he didn't have access to the media. He had to run as a write-in candidate, as he would not appear in the ballots. These factors led to López Portillo effectively running unopposed. His campaign echoed this "unanimous" support for him, and his slogan was "La solución somos todos" ("All of us are the solution"). López Portillo later joked that, due to running without opposition, it would have been enough for "his mother's vote for him" to win the election. López Portillo had been separated from his wife Carmen Romano for some time, but upon being nominated by the PRI as its presidential candidate, the two of them were persuaded by PRI advisers to reunite and to maintain the appearance of a solid marriage, so as to not alienate the largely conservative, catholic populace. Popular Cuban singer Celia Cruz recorded a jingle for the López Portillo campaign, titled "¿Dónde estás, José?" ("Where are you, José"?). Other entertainers such as Enrique Guzmán and María Elena Velasco performed on an LP issued by the López Portillo campaign. Results President By state Senate Jorge Cruickshank García from the Popular Socialist Party was elected Senator for the state of Oaxaca. Although he ran in coalition with the PRI and therefore was not an opposition senator, he was the first Senator not to come from the PRI since 1929. Chamber of Deputies Aftermath There were many rumours that outgoing president Luis Echeverría was planning to