# The Candidate (2016)

> A politician's wife and senator in Mexico tries to protect her family and push ideals through a political world built on power.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/65577

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 61
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama
- Created by: Leonardo Bechini
- Network: Las Estrellas
- Cast: Silvia Navarro, Víctor González, Rafael Sánchez Navarro, Helena Rojo, Ari Telch, Susana González, Nailea Norvind, Patricio Castillo
- TMDB rating: 8.4/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6255080/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: mild
- Tone: earnest, melodramatic, intimate, tense, hopeful

## What critics say

Audiences broadly rate the series as acclaimed, admiring its political drama and Silvia Navarro's lead performance.

## Synopsis

The Candidate (2016-2017) is a Mexican telenovela-style political drama created by Leonardo Bechini for Las Estrellas, produced by Televisa. Its single season of 61 episodes follows Regina Bárcenas (Silvia Navarro), a woman who juggles the daily struggle of keeping her family together while her marriage frays and her teenage son rebels. Her world is unusual because she is married to Gerardo Martínez (Víctor González), the head of government of the city, and she is also an honorable senator who tries to do right by her fellow citizens. The engine of the story is her push to improve people's lives and impose ideals over the raw, self-interested power that men in politics seem to pursue at any cost. Each episode layers household confrontations with backroom maneuvering, so domestic scenes and public calculations keep pressing against each other. Supporting principals include Alonso San Román (Rafael Sánchez Navarro), Natalia de San Román (Helena Rojo), and Ignacio (Ari Telch), whose loyalties and ambitions complicate Regina's path. The tone is earnest and melodramatic, with emotional stakes that feel intimate even when the politics turn cold. Fans of House of Cards and Latin American political melodrama will find resonance here, especially viewers who enjoy a serialized family story set against the machinery of government.

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