Mexican candidate warns of election violence

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The presidential candidate for Mexico's main opposition party, Roberto Madrazo, warned on Wednesday that campaigning might turn violent if his opponents do not tone down their rhetoric.

Leftist candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is in an ugly war of words with President
Vicente Fox, who he says is illegally using government resources to back conservative candidate Felipe Calderon.

Lopez Obrador said on Monday the president had "verbal incontinence" and accused Fox last week of being a plaything for the United States because he failed to resist U.S. plans to halt illegal immigration.

Madrazo, of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, warned things could get out of hand, the online version of El Universal newspaper said.

"I see the fight getting more violent. Things are hotting up between Andres Manuel and Calderon. There is going to come a point where they can't control it and their supporters are going to begin to pass from verbal violence to physical violence," Madrazo said.

Scuffles between leftists and conservative supporters have broken out at Calderon rallies in recent weeks but there has been no other violence.

Calderon leads opinion polls for the July 2 election after overtaking Lopez Obrador last month with the help of negative campaign ads that paint the leftist as a populist.

A poll on Wednesday showed Madrazo way behind the other two.