Mexican president likens leftist rival to Venezuela's Maduro

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto delivers his speech to supporters of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) during their national assembly ahead of the 2018 election at Mexico City’s Palacio de los Deportes, Mexico August 12, 2017. REUTERS/Henry Romero

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto likened the front-runner for next year's presidential election to Venezuelan leftist leaders in an interview published on Thursday, suggesting the opposition candidate could unleash economic chaos if he wins office.

Former Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has led early opinion polls for the 2018 election. Pena Nieto's Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) earlier this year sought to brand Lopez Obrador's MORENA party an ally of Venezuela after the Venezuelan Embassy suggested it had MORENA's backing.