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Mexico's Active and Demanding Citizenry

Christopher Wilson

Halfway through the six-year term of Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, Mexico went to the polls on June 7 for its largest mid-term elections, renewing all 500 seats in the lower house of Congress and 17 state legislatures, as well as selecting new governors for nine states and mayors for hundreds of cities across the country.

Mexico's Active and Demanding Citizenry

Halfway through the six-year term of Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, Mexico went to the polls on June 7 for its largest mid-term elections, renewing all 500 seats in the lower house of Congress and 17 state legislatures, as well as selecting new governors for nine states and mayors for hundreds of cities across the country.

Mexicans are more frustrated than ever with persistent violence and corruption, but initial results show the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) performing well, winning more seats in the federal legislature than any of its opponents.

For most people reading the headlines coming out of Mexico in the past year - extrajudicial killings in the State of Mexico, 43 students missing in Guerrero, conflict of interest scandals involving homes being built for the president's family and inner circle, disappointing economic growth - such a result is probably surprising. Indeed, in many ways the conditions were ripe for a much harsher rejection of the ruling party at the ballot box; after all, the president currently has the lowest approval rating of any Mexican president in 20 years.

The reason for the PRI success, despite everything, is actually quite simple. By and large, Mexicans feel they have no good alternative.

Read the full article on Al Jazeera.

About the Author

Christopher Wilson

Christopher Wilson

Global Fellow, Mexico Institute
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Mexico Institute

The Mexico Institute seeks to improve understanding, communication, and cooperation between Mexico and the United States by promoting original research, encouraging public discussion, and proposing policy options for enhancing the bilateral relationship. A binational Advisory Board, chaired by Luis Téllez and Earl Anthony Wayne, oversees the work of the Mexico Institute.   Read more