Tony Payan

Recycling a failed idea in Mexico

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In light of the lack of clarity about the force, we must consider two important issues. The first is Mexico’s experience with such forces, and the second is the set of political constraints that will complicate the creation of a National Guard. On the first issue, it must be said that Mexico’s experience with special police forces is, at best, discouraging. Many mayors and governors, as well as the federal government, have created special forces to fight drug cartels — only to see them become corrupt, ineffectual and eventually dismantled. Continue Reading →

What’s ahead for Mexico-U.S. relations?

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In the days following Mexico’s July 1 presidential election, members of the world political class rushed to congratulate Enrique Peña Nieto, the PRI candidate who won with just 38 percent of the vote. The PRI — defeated in 2000 after 70 years in power — was quick to pronounce itself a “new” (i.e., reformed) party. Peña Nieto was also eager to move on, and soon began to discuss his plans for Mexico and a U.S.-Mexico binational agenda. But the post-election honeymoon was not to last. Continue Reading →

The PRI’s victory in the Mexican elections: Plus ça change …

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A few days after the July 1 Mexican elections — in which PRI candidate Enrique Peña Nieto won by a margin of three million votes — the Mexican Federal Electoral Institute (IFE), which organized the country’s elections, agreed to recount around 60 percent of all the precincts. This concession comes after the independent media, the PRD (the Party of the Democratic Revolution, whose candidate was Andrés Manuel López Obrador) and some civil organizations began to document a massive operation allegedly orchestrated by the PRI to buy hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of votes through the use of gift card-like instruments brokered through several companies and individuals throughout Mexico. Continue Reading →

Mexico’s presidential election: Back to the future

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In the July 1 national elections, Mexicans reinstated the PRI (Partido Revolucionario Institucional), the political party that governed the country for 70 years in the 20th century and that was kicked out of power 12 years ago. Analyzing how Mexicans voted and what it means has to be done carefully, and the temptation to make simplistic and sweeping generalizations must be resisted. As I made my trek to Coahuila from Houston to observe the elections, I spoke with people waiting for up to six hours to cast their ballots. Several things struck me as important to note. Continue Reading →