MEXICO CITY — Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Thursday urged Latino voters not to support Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the next U.S. presidential election, Accused the Republican politician of trying to win votes at the expense of immigration.

DeSantis said Wednesday he will seek the 2024 Republican presidential nomination and vow to build a wall On the Mexican border, it was the latest in a series of hawkish comments on immigration that he said resonated with Latino voters who want strong enforcement.

López Obrador dismissed those comments.

“All he plays politics with immigrants is because he wants to be the Republican nominee,” López Obrador told a government news conference. “I hope Latinos in Florida wake up and don’t vote for him.”

DeSantis, who has supported border security and mocked so-called “sanctuary cities” where immigrants can shelter, said he would impose strict controls on illegal immigration and limit asylum.

“Day one, it’s a national emergency. We’re going to mobilize all resources to build the border wall, close the border,” Florida’s governor told Fox News.

In addition to building the wall, he said he would pursue a plan similar to former U.S. President Donald Trump’s “Remain in Mexico,” a controversial policy that forced asylum seekers to stay in Mexico while A U.S. hearing on its application is awaited.

López Obrador, previously warning republicans Instead of targeting immigrants for political gain, they also attacked Trump’s immigration policies in the early days of the former US president’s administration. At the time, Lopez Obrador was in the opposition.

After López Obrador took power in 2018, he bowed to Trump’s pressure to tighten Mexico’s borders.

López Obrador, whose term ends before the next U.S. election, is now seeking enlist the support of a successor To be elected in June 2024.