The Mexican State

Citizens, Society, and the State

Cleavages:

• Urban v. Rural

• Social Class: Gini coefficient is high, (.50). Economic inequality is high

• Mestizo v. Amerindian

• North v. South

Political Culture

• What is the link between Mexican culture and Mexican political institutions?

1. Mexican political culture sustained PRI domination-Why?2. Mexicans are highly supportive of the political institutions

that evolved from the Mexican Revolution, and they endorse the democratic principles embodied in the Constitution of 1917

3. Historically, Mexicans tolerated corruption in government as a price to be paid in order to extract benefits from the system. Drug related corruption in the 90’s reduced tolerance of corruption in government

4. Social and Economic changes eroded many core traditional values which helped produce a more democratic Mexico in 2000

Political Culture

• Unifiers:1. Language

2. Religion

3. History

4. National Identity

5. Mass Culture

Political Culture

• Women play minor role in Mexican Politics• Strong values associated with machismo• Urbanization, more women in the workforce

(30%). Will it change the political culture?• Camarillas- Patron-Client Networks which

extend from the party elite to vote-mobilizing organizations (PRI losing control as more are educated and urbanization occurs)

Political Culture

• 4 Sub Cultures1. Rural Indians who do not speak Spanish

(10%) not active in politics2. Older, poorly educated, rural, lower class,

and female- “Subjects” reasonably aware of what the government is doing. Tolerate the system, assuming they can do little to change it. No political efficacy.

3. Regime’s supporters- Those who benefit from the system. Few of them.

4. Anti- PRI- emerging and growing

Political Participation

• Constitution:1. Grants basic freedoms2. Universal Suffrage (18)3. No interference with religion, travel,

private property, schools4. Open press, debate5. History of Human Rights violations

(Strikes, Battle of the Streets) Limits Mexico as a Democracy

Protests

• When citizen demands have gotten out of hand, the government accommodates their demands and includes them in the political process through co-optation. (the tactic of neutralizing or winning over a minority by assimilating them into the established group or culture)

• 1968 protests by students in Tlateloco Plaza resulted in the death of 200 students. The next president recruited large numbers of student activists into his administration and increased spending on social services, which provided jobs for many young people.

Protests

1994: Zapatista uprising• Poor Chiapas region• Disaffected Amerindians2006: Oaxaca uprising• Teacher strike escalated to include other groups• Went on for months• PRI Governor Ulises Ruiz won through corruption,

escalates tensions• Fox sends in troops during last month in office• Ruiz still in office• Ongoing issue

Linkage Institutions

• Political Parties, the media, and interest groups all worked to link Mexican citizens to their government.

• Linkage took place under PRI umbrella• As democratization took place, civil society

and linkage institutions also developed• Because the structure of civil society and

linkage institutions were in place, activating democracy was easy

Political Participation

• Comparatively, Mexico is not repressive. PRI used means other than violence to stay in power (voter fraud)

• Election Day: Very Festive. Free food if you voted for the PRI

• High voter turnout: (Before 1988, PRI inflated turnout numbers, hard to measure)

• 1994- 78%• 2000- 64% • 2006- 60%

PRI

• Mexico seen as “semidemocratic”• State Corporatism: state mediated among different

groups to ensure no one group successfully challenged the government or party

• PRI violated democratic principles to stay in power• Bought votes, stuffed ballot boxes, etc• Controlled the Federal Election Commission- Electoral

Alchemy: The way Mexican’s have used fraud to rig elections

• An elaborate network of Camarillas: 15 million members• Members drawn to the PRI by their desire for power, not

ideology• Reminiscent of the political machines in the US during the

late 19th century (Boss Tweed)

PRI• Before 2000, PRI never lost a presidential election. Before 1997,

never lost control of the Chamber. Controlled 95% of Mexico’s 2000 municipalities.

PRI lost Mexican vote for first time in 71 years

Reasons:• Always had groups who refused to cooperate with PRI• Civil society- Disconnected business men who where not incorporated

the government system• Formed PAN What will be next?• State corporatism? (state controls interests)• Neocorporatism? (where interests, not the government controls)• Pluralism? (Independent interests have input, but don’t control)

Elections Today (2000-2006)• End of PRI rule 1997- change in electoral system

reflected honest voting, gave opposition parties more seats = higher voter turnout (publicly funded elections)

• Corporatism eroding - describes the way Mexicans are integrated into the political system via patron-client relations

• Factors that influenced the 2006 election:1. Region- North 47% PAN, 27% PRI, 24% PRD and Mexico

city region: 44% PRD 2. Education: Educated- PAN 42% of college educated and

38% for PRD3. Income: Upper Income PAN 50%, 30% PRD

Elections Today (2000-2006)

• Corporatism- developed through trade unions. Until recently, all workers belonged to a trade union or organization. (quasi-official). PRI solidified support in 3 ways:

1. Provided tangible benefits- land redistribution, healthcare2. Tied poor Mexicans who were powerless to the regime-

limited protest3. Gave the PRI a pool from which to recruit leaders at the

grassroots level. Gave hope to many workers.• PRI’s hold diminished as the economy of the 80’s

worsened. Well educated did not join PRI.• 2000- charged $92 million in illegal campaign practices

and laid off 2/3’s of its staff. Lost its base supporters.• 2002 political comeback?

Elections

• Similar to Germany• Electoral law combines single-member districts

and proportional representation for the Chamber of Deputies. 500 Seats. 300- plurality, or single member districts. 200- proportional to party representation. (31 states and Mexico City)

• The Senate has 128 directly elected members (3 from each of the 31 states and Mexico City)

• The President is elected in a first-past-the-post (plurality) system.

Political InstitutionsPAN

• National Action Party• Only real opposition party to PRI until late 80’s• Catholic Church and Business Community, Pro

business (Reagan supporter)• 1983- won governor of Baja California Norte• Charismatic leader- Fox- alliance with the

Green’s and left-of-center intellectuals• Philip Calderon, President

The PRD

• Cautemoc Cardenas- founder of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (1989)

• Son of beloved Lazaro Cardenas• Leftist• Ran for President in 1988 and 2000.• Competed with PRI in the 90’s and Fox’s

alliance in 2000 • Narrowly lost Presidency in 2006• Controls Mexico City

Women in Civil Society

• New Mexican Women’s movement• Includes not only elite wealthy, but rural

poor• Local organizations rally around local issues• National issues also include: abortion,

unequal pay, violence against women• Movement Growing as middle class

enlarges and economic developments further erode traditional social structures

The Mexican State• Fox did not change the system (Did not have the votes in

Congress)• Similar to US (constitutional theory and political reality are not the

same)• Presidential System• Bicameral Legislature (lower house elected from single-member

districts of roughly equal size and an upper house giving each state two seats)

• Federation • Separation of Power (Check and Balances)• Unlike the US- Semi-authoritarian and highly stable one-party

system because of a number of mostly informal and temporary arrangements that became a lasting part of the Mexican landscape. How the PRI institutionalized the revolution.

Nonreelection and Presidential Domination

• Real power and policy making held in few hands (USSR) PRI hegemony had 2 vital components

1. Principle of Nonreelection: Inexperienced Congress and State leaders

2. Power in the hands of the president

President PRI

CongressPeople

The Executive

• 6 year terms- only 1 term- a lot of power in a short amount of time

• Initiate legislation- all bills of importance • Issue decrees on a wide variety of subjects (transfer of

funds, authorize funds, implement laws)• Informal power- Control began before the election,

placed his own team in place. (Chosen from the cabinet)• Selects all bureaucratic positions • Changed in 1999- US style campaign• Political life ends when you leave office

The Cabinet, Bureaucracy, and theJudiciary

• All posts were filled on patron-client relations• Today, the President is chosen from the Gobernacion,

(internal security and administration of elections, cabinet post)

• Fox broke tradition by appointing those not loyal to PAN to his Cabinet

• Government bureaucracy (employs 1 in 5) not based on merit- change posts frequently- high turnover- can’t gain expertise- changing.

• Large Para- Statal sector- composed of semiautonomous or autonomous government agencies. (Government owned companies would produce goods and services- PEMEX- Reform pushes for privatization)

The Cabinet, Bureaucracy, and theJudiciary

• Judiciary- Judicial Review (on paper) never overruled a government action.

• Appointed for life but leave after 6 years

Congress• Chamber of Deputies: 3 year terms• Senate: 6 year terms, ½ elected every 3 years• Rubber stamp: Why?1. May only serve one term2. No seniority or expertise3. Subservient to the President- all about who you know4. PRI loyalists who were rewarded for years of work• 1997 changed the system- PAN and PRD held the

Chamber and blocked PRI legislation for the first time (gridlock)

• Still no majority in either house, will take years to develop interparty cooperation

The Federal System

• 31 States plus the Federal District (Mexico City) Each state has a governor and unicameral legislature

• States divided into 2,000 municipalities. Each has a mayor and a municipal council

• Have little power as the PRI dominates (15% of municipalities and 25% of governorships are controlled by opposition parties)

• 1997 PRD control in Mexico City • PAN controls the North

The Military

• PRI has historically curbed the power of the military- Depoliticized

• Disciplined force with professional officer corps

• Defense and national security

• Ties to drug lords?

Corporatism and Corruption

• Bypassed individualism• Incorporated groups in a version of corporatism1. Government created or legitimized

organizations similar to interest groups in industrialized democracies but in reality existed to keep the PRI in office

2. Elaborate spoils system3. All systems/institutions/organizations corrupt 4. Racketeering, kickbacks, and embezzlement

routine (PEMEX)• Trend: Crack down on corruption

Public Policy

• Debt and Development:

1. Pre-90’s- Stable government transitioned peacefully from egalitarianism to state-sponsored industrialization (6.5 growth rate until decline in oil prices of the 1980s)

2. Adopted structural adjustment policies

3. Currently, have done little to stop economic decline and widened gap between rich and poor

Debt• Early successes:1. Import substitution: a country should attempt to substitute

products which it imports, mostly finished goods, with locally produced substitutes

2. Not a socialist policy- only took over industries for economic reasons

3. Extended infrastructure4. Nationalization ends 19825. Low taxes/High Tariffs6. Averaged 6% growth from 1940-1980 (food, tobacco, textiles,

machinery, iron, steel, and chemicals-labor intensive) 7. Stable Peso 12.5 = $1 low inflation8. No socialization programs, high poverty, pollution

Debt• The Crisis- Began in the 70’s• Unable to begin 2nd stage of industrialization (technology)• Mismanagement of key industries (PEMEX)• Rapid population growth• Huge increase in government spending (Structural Adjustment) • Revenues did not keep up with spending (deficits) which led to a

large national debt of $107 billion by 1987. (Heavy borrowing) • Debt is 16% of GNP• Could not retain import substitution• Low rate of the peso kept imports out and business abroad more

lucrative (capital flight)• Oil prices dropped• By 1983- had to nationalize banks, inflation at 100% to 150% by

1987• Earthquake in 1985 followed another drop in oil prices

Debt

• 4 policies to reduce the debt and turnaround the economy:

1. Debt Reduction (loan agreements)

2. Cuts in Government Spending (hurt the poor)

3. Privatization (still controls PEMEX) 24 Billionaires overnight

4. Opening the Economy- NAFTA

Issues:

1. Poverty

2. Immigration

3. Drugs

4. Environment

5. Crime

6. Overpopulation/rapid Growth (1.1.5% growth rate- 2007 CIA Factbook)

In Conclusion

Regime Type:

• State Corporatist Structure: Central, authoritarian rule that allows input from interest groups outside of government. Camarilla system allowed leaders of important groups, business elites, workers, and peasants to serve in high government offices.

In Conclusion

Today: • Political and Economic Reforms• Corporatism still characteristic of policymaking • Is Mexican government authoritarian or

democratic?• Is the economy centrally controlled or operate

under free market principles?• Direction of Transition- toward liberal democracy

and capitalism

In Conclusion

Modern government types (modernization theory) have democratic systems and are measured by:

• Political Accountability: Regular, free, and fair elections

• Political Competition• Political Freedom• Political Equality

Mexico is in transition between an authoritarian and democratic political system