# La candidata

La candidata is a Mexican telenovela produced by Giselle González for Televisa. It is an original story about the world of politics. A total of 60 episodes have been confirmed so far.
La Candidata was well received by critics, with its divergence in tone from previous telenovelas and the addressing of topics, such as political corruption, being particularly praised. It won eight awards at the 35th TVyNovelas Awards, including Best Telenovela of the Year.

## Plot

Like many women, Regina struggles every day for the welfare of her family, having to cope from the worn relationship with her husband to the rebellion of her young son ... but in her case everything is in sight, because she is the wife of Head of Government of the city and, as if that were not enough, an honorable senator, who always tries to do what is best for her fellow men. In the world of politics, a world where men build power at any cost, is Regina, who strives to improve the reality of people and impose ideals over power.
When Alonso, her husband, decides to run for the presidential candidacy, he shows his true face: ferocious, violent and perverse. He is capable of destroying any political adversary without measuring the consequences, without realizing that he is transforming his best ally, the companion that took him to the most important place of his career, is his main adversary. When Regina is forced to confront her husband, Gerardo, with whom she had a relationship in college, reappears in her life. He is not only the main political rival of Alonso and the man who disputed the presidential chair, but also the one that will try to regain her love. Regina, realizing that her perfect life alongside Alonso, whom she always believed she was in love with and had a child with, is now full of lies and betrayals; and she decides to leave him.
The publication of all the secrets, deceptions, and corrupt actions of Alonso confirm to Regina that her decision was the correct one. She knows that in order to avoid disaster, she must destroy Alonso's whole world and transform his own reality to impose himself in a world full of corruption. Fate will then lead her to discover that her way is related to politics, but next to an honest man, who supports her unconditionally, even leaving aside his own political ambitions, a man who is there to push and support her ... even when she becomes the candidate.
It is no longer just a political struggle, it is a struggle to defend and change not only Regina's own destiny, but that of an entire country.

## Cast
### Main

* Silvia Navarro as Regina Bárcenas
* Víctor González as Gerardo Martínez
* Rafael Sánchez Navarro as Alonso San Román
* Susana González as Cecilia Aguilar

### Secondary

* Nailea Norvind as Teresa Rivera
* Ari Telch as Ignacio
* Helena Rojo as Natalia de San Román
* Patricio Castillo as Omar San Román
* Luz María Jerez as Noemí
* Juan Carlos Barreto as Mario Bárcenas
* Juan Carlos Colombo as Morales
* Verónica Langer as Magda
* Adalberto Parra as Mauro Castillo
* Pilar Ixquic Mata as Isela Aguilar
* Gilberto de Anda as Almirón
* Enrique Arreola as Pacheco
* Irineo Álvarez as Larreta
* José Carlos Ruiz as Presidente del Senado
* Fabiola Guajardo as Florencia
* Fernanda Borches as Daniela
* Federico Ayos as Emiliano San Román Bárcenas
* Juan Martin Jáuregui as Hernán
* Karla Farfán as Ximena Martínez Rivera
* Aleyda Gallardo as Nieves
* Ángel Cerlo as Ochoa
* Ricardo Crespo as Javier
* Bárbara Falconi as Nayeli
* Michelle González as Marcia
* Fabian Roblez
* Aurora Clavel

### Special participation

* Liz Gallardo as Déborah Rondero
* Fernando Larrañaga as Pablo Contreras
* Tony Marcín as Mother of Hugo

## Production

Filming began on August 16, 2016, at Televisa San Ángel.

### Casting

Casting for the telenovela began from June through August 2016. Actors Juan Carlos Barreto, Helena Rojo, Luz María Jerez, Nailea Norvind, Ari Telch, Federico Ayos and Adalberto Parra were cast in unknown Roles. On July 13, 2016, Susana González was cast as the sister of the protagonist. Two days later, Rafael Sánchez Navarro was cast as the husband of the protagonist. Blanca Guerra was cast as the titular role, but was replaced by Silvia Navarro because of tight schedule. For the role of the main male protagonist, Mark Tacher, Víctor González and Juan Pablo Medina were nominees, but ultimately the role went to Víctor González.

## Reception

Following the premiere, television critic Álvaro Cueva said La Candidata represented a fundamental change for the better of the national television industry. Besides its theme (which he contrasted with previous political telenovelas), Cueva also praised the cinematography, hair and makeup, wardrobe, and music. After the finale, Cueva lauded the creators for the original script and for their depiction of a gritty situation in Mexico, rather than making another remake or Cinderella story.
In November 2016, certain media outlets that support MORENA leader Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a likely presidential candidate, expressed their belief that this television program was created in order to favor former First Lady Margarita Zavala, possible PAN candidate, in the 2018 Presidential Election. In an overview after the show's finale, Milenio commentator Fernando Mejía Barquera mentioned these assertions saying that those "who held this position must have abandoned it during the course of the telenovela because nothing of the main character was reminiscent of the former first lady." With the main character being described as a populist.

## Episodes

| No. | Title | Original release date | U.S. air date | US viewers (millions) |
| 1 | "Buscando un culpable" | November 21, 2016 (2016-11-21) | May 29, 2017 | 0.58 |
| 2 | "Cecilia teme por su vida" | November 22, 2016 (2016-11-22) | May 30, 2017 | 0.62 |
| 3 | "Regina sospecha que su padre tiene un amante" | November 23, 2016 (2016-11-23) | May 31, 2017 | 0.55 |
| 4 | "Alonso y Cecilia trabajarán juntos" | November 24, 2016 (2016-11-24) | June 5, 2017 | 0.55 |
| 5 | "Mario es secuestrado" | November 25, 2016 (2016-11-25) | June 6, 2017 | 0.58 |
| 6 | "Regina en contra de la corrupción" | November 28, 2016 (2016-11-28) | June 7, 2017 | 0.58 |
| 7 | "Regina se disculpa con Cecilia" | November 29, 2016 (2016-11-29) | June 9, 2017 | 0.40 |
| 8 | "Regina y Gerardo quedan expuestos" | November 30, 2016 (2016-11-30) | June 12, 2017 | 0.52 |
| 9 | "Omar manda a matar a Javier" | December 1, 2016 (2016-12-01) | June 13, 2017 | 0.34 |
| 10 | "El encuentro de Cecilia y Alonso" | December 2, 2016 (2016-12-02) | June 14, 2017 | 0.35 |
| 11 | "Emiliano se culpa por la muerte de Hugo" | December 5, 2016 (2016-12-05) | June 15, 2017 | 0.30 |
| 12 | "Omar amenaza a Natalia" | December 6, 2016 (2016-12-06) | June 16, 2017 | 0.38 |
| 13 | "Regina presentará su candidatura" | December 7, 2016 (2016-12-07) | June 19, 2017 | 0.36 |
| 14 | "Mario sufre un infarto" | December 8, 2016 (2016-12-08) | June 20, 2017 | 0.31 |
| 15 | "La mentira de Gerardo" | December 9, 2016 (2016-12-09) | June 21, 2017 | 0.30 |
| 16 | "Pacheco investiga a Cecilia" | December 12, 2016 (2016-12-12) | June 22, 2017 | 0.31 |
| 17 | "Regina rechaza el amor de Gerardo" | December 13, 2016 (2016-12-13) | June 26, 2017 | 0.24 |
| 18 | "Alonso trata de recuperar el amor de Regina" | December 14, 2016 (2016-12-14) | June 27, 2017 | 0.17 |
| 19 | "Gerardo y Alonso se enfrentan" | December 15, 2016 (2016-12-15) | June 29, 2017 | 0.23 |
| 20 | "Gerardo ataca a Ignacio" | December 16, 2016 (2016-12-16) | June 30, 2017 | 0.17 |
| 21 | "Gerardo dispuesto a todo por Regina" | December 19, 2016 (2016-12-19) | July 3, 2017 | 0.20 |
| 22 | "Regina cede ante el amor de Gerardo" | December 20, 2016 (2016-12-20) | July 4, 2017 | 0.29 |
| 23 | "Teresa le hace un escándalo a Regina" | December 21, 2016 (2016-12-21) | July 5, 2017 | 0.25 |
| 24 | "Regina enfrenta a Cecilia" | December 22, 2016 (2016-12-22) | July 6, 2017 | 0.25 |
| 25 | "Regina pone a Gerardo en su contra" | December 23, 2016 (2016-12-23) | July 10, 2017 | 0.28 |
| 26 | "Cecilia revela que tiene una hermana" | December 26, 2016 (2016-12-26) | July 17, 2017 | 0.21 |
| 27 | "Noemí es atropellada" | December 27, 2016 (2016-12-27) | July 18, 2017 | 0.22 |
| 28 | "Cecilia celosa de Lorena" | December 28, 2016 (2016-12-28) | July 20, 2017 | 0.36 |
| 29 | "Natalia intenta escapar" | December 29, 2016 (2016-12-29) | July 21, 2017 | 0.23 |
| 30 | "Emiliano es víctima de Cecilia" | December 30, 2016 (2016-12-30) | July 24, 2017 | 0.41 |
| 31 | "Regina renuncia a su partido" | January 2, 2017 (2017-01-02) | July 25, 2017 | 0.32 |
| 32 | "Mauro es el nuevo gobernador" | January 3, 2017 (2017-01-03) | July 26, 2017 | 0.28 |
| 33 | "Regina y Gerardo envueltos el deseo" | January 4, 2017 (2017-01-04) | July 27, 2017 | 0.18 |
| 34 | "Regina comienza la guerra contra Alonso" | January 5, 2017 (2017-01-05) | July 28, 2017 | 0.19 |
| 35 | "Cecilia inicia su venganza contra Regina" | January 6, 2017 (2017-01-06) | July 31, 2017 | 0.25 |
| 36 | "Gerardo o tu familia" | January 9, 2017 (2017-01-09) | August 1, 2017 | 0.22 |
| 37 | "Teresa está embarazada" | January 10, 2017 (2017-01-10) | August 2, 2017 | 0.29 |
| 38 | "Nayeli le pone una trampa a Ximena" | January 11, 2017 (2017-01-11) | August 3, 2017 | 0.17 |
| 39 | "Teresa arruinará la vida de Gerardo" | January 12, 2017 (2017-01-12) | August 4, 2017 | 0.16 |
| 40 | "Omar ordena matar a Mario" | January 13, 2017 (2017-01-13) | August 7, 2017 | 0.24 |
| 41 | "Mario estalla frente a Cecilia" | January 16, 2017 (2017-01-16) | August 8, 2017 | 0.20 |
| 42 | "Alonso usa a Emiliano" | January 17, 2017 (2017-01-17) | August 9, 2017 | 0.19 |
| 43 | "Ignacio ataca a Almirón" | January 18, 2017 (2017-01-18) | August 10, 2017 | 0.21 |
| 44 | "Emiliano contra Alonso" | January 19, 2017 (2017-01-19) | August 11, 2017 | 0.14 |
| 45 | "Alonso deja todo por Regina" | January 20, 2017 (2017-01-20) | August 14, 2017 | 0.20 |
| 46 | "Regina se postula como La Candidata" | January 23, 2017 (2017-01-23) | August 15, 2017 | 0.25 |
| 47 | "Emiliano es culpable" | January 24, 2017 (2017-01-24) | August 16, 2017 | 0.27 |
| 48 | "Alonso amenaza de muerte a Regina" | January 25, 2017 (2017-01-25) | August 17, 2017 | 0.28 |
| 49 | "Emiliano sufre un atentado" | January 26, 2017 (2017-01-26) | August 18, 2017 | 0.22 |
| 50 | "Teresa provoca una pelea con Regina" | January 27, 2017 (2017-01-27) | August 21, 2017 | 0.25 |
| 51 | "Teresa pide que Alonso mate a Gerardo" | January 30, 2017 (2017-01-30) | August 24, 2017 | 0.24 |
| 52 | "Gerardo es acusado por Teresa" | January 31, 2017 (2017-01-31) | August 25, 2017 | 0.19 |
| 53 | "Cecilia pide hundir a Regina" | February 1, 2017 (2017-02-01) | August 28, 2017 | 0.30 |
| 54 | "Gerardo va a la cárcel" | February 2, 2017 (2017-02-02) | August 29, 2017 | 0.29 |
| 55 | "Omar sufre un terrible accidente" | February 3, 2017 (2017-02-03) | August 30, 2017 | 0.25 |
| 56 | "Regina se entera que Cecilia es su hermana" | February 6, 2017 (2017-02-06) | August 31, 2017 | 0.24 |
| 57 | "Mario suplica la ayuda de Cecilia" | February 7, 2017 (2017-02-07) | September 1, 2017 | 0.27 |
| 58 | "Lorena en manos de "El Chulo"" | February 8, 2017 (2017-02-08) | September 4, 2017 | 0.32 |
| 59 | "Regina se enfrenta con Mario" | February 9, 2017 (2017-02-09) | September 5, 2017 | 0.34 |
| 60 | "Alonso y Escalante deciden ser socios" | February 10, 2017 (2017-02-10) | September 6, 2017 | 0.27 |
| 61 | "Gran final" | February 12, 2017 (2017-02-12) | September 7, 2017September 8, 2017 | 0.330.33 |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated | Result |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Telenovela of the Year | Giselle González | Won |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Actress | Silvia Navarro | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Actor | Victor González | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Antagonist Actress | Nailea Norvind | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Antagonist Actor | Juan Carlos Barreto | Won |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Leading Actress | Helena Rojo | Won |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Leading Actor | Patricio Castillo | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Co-lead Actress | Susana González | Won |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Co-lead Actor | Rafael Sánchez Navarro | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Pilar Mata | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Ari Telch | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Young Lead Actress | Karla Farfán | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Young Lead Actor | Federico Ayos | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Female Revelation | Michelle González | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Male Revelation | Juan Martín Jáuregui | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Original Story or Adaptation | Leonardo Bechini | Won |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Direction | Eric Morales and Juan Pablo Blanco | Won |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Direction of the Camaras | Armando Zafra and Luis Rodríguez | Won |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Musical Theme | "Instrumental" (n/a) | Nominated |
| 2017 | 35th TVyNovelas Awards | Best Cast | La candidata | Won |