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Historical roots of the Mexican political

system

Rodolfo Hernandez Guerrero

University of Texas at Dallas

Mexican politics

Government 4396

Spring 1998

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Introduction To identify the historical genesis of

political institutions, political behavior and political decision processes in the Mexican political system

To recognize the contradictions between theory and practice in the Mexican political reality

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Topics of Discussion The Spanish heritage Nineteenth-century political

heritage The Revolutionary heritage: social

violence and reform Interface with the United States Conclusion

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The Spanish heritage

Racial heritage. A highly stratified society: peninsulares, criollos, mestizos, indigenas

Religious heritage: Catholicism. Substitution of faith. The official religion.

Contractual relationship between the Catholic church and the Spanish authorities

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The Spanish heritage

Corporatism. Fueros (e.g. Catholic church, military)

Bureaucracy Personalization of power:

Viceroy=Presidency Centralization of power Authoritarian political institutions

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Nineteenth-Century political heritage

Liberalism versus Conservatism: Constitution of 1857

Sense of the existence of the State Separation of the Catholic church

and the State The Porfiriato. Positivism. cientificos.

Peace, order and progress Pattern for civil-military relations

(until 1940s)

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Nineteenth-Century political heritage

Capitalism Absolute centralized power in the

Presidency Paternalismo Sense of unity as a Nation: railroad Conflict of classes

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The Revolutionary heritage

Nationalism: Mexicanization Socialism: social justice (Emiliano

Zapata and Francisco Villa) Charro leadership Strong figure of ejido (communal

property of land) Constitution of 1917 (articles 3, 27,

and 123)

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The Revolutionary heritage

Institutionalization of the Revolution: PNR=PRM=PRI

Political legitimization through corporatism: CTM and CNC

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Interface with the United States

Liberalism Democracy The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo US President Woodrow Wilson and

his ambassador Henry Lane Wilson

The results: a strong sense of Nationalism

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Conclusion Mexico, as both a colony and an

independent nation, established patterns that have contributed heavily to the development of its political system

Permanent conflict of social class This conflict is resolved by a sort of

quasi-official relationship between groups or institutions and the state (corporatism)

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Conclusion Mexicanization strengthened Mexican

values and culture as well as political nationalism

The revolution, contrary to its original principles, left Mexico with a heritage of strong, authoritarian leadership. It established the importance of constitutionalism, even if many of the constitution’s liberal provisions were never enforced

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Conclusion Mexico’s long, troublesome

relationship with the United States has implications for its political evolution and the functioning of its model. The level of the United States’s economic influence in Mexico and the United States seizure of more than half of Mexico’s national territory, prompted Mexican nationalism and anti-Americanism

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Real politics Can Mexico keep its sense of nationalism

in the era of market globalization? Why? (Hint: identify the weaknesses and strengthens of each possibility)

If you were a Mexican official trade negotiator, How would you synthesize your nationalistic agenda and the principles of a free trade agreement? (Hint: think of sovereignty and the ideological principles of social justice of the Mexican revolution)

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Structure of Mexican

government

“All important decisions are formally initiated by the

president, and the president both claims and receives full

credit for the decision, whether or not the idea for the decision was originally

his.”

Susan K. Purcell

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The structure of government

Every political system devises a set of structures and institutions to facilitate political decision making.

Mexico evolved a political system that formally resembles that of the United States but centralizes much greater authority in the executive branch.

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Structure of government

The powers of the executive branch combined with the dominance of a leadership group represented by a single party -the PRI and its antecedents- has led to a government dominated by the executive, largely in the person of the president

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The executive branch

Twenty one Secretaries:

Attorney General of the Republic

Attorney General of Justice for the Federal District

Secretariat of the Comptroller General

Secretariat of Fishing Department of the

Federal District Secretariat of Agrarian

Reform

Paraestatales: PEMEX Federal Commission of

Electricity (CFE) National Bank of

Foreign Commerce National Company of

Public Commodities (CONASUPO)

SIDERMEX National Finance Bank

(Nacional Financiera)

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Executive branch

Secretaries: Secretariat of

Agriculture and Hydraulic Resources

Secretariat of Tourism Mexican Institute of

Social Security Secretariat of

Communications and Transportation

Secretariat of Foreign Relations

Secretariat of Government

Paraestatales: Others focus on utilities,

communications, transportation, minerals, fertilizers, and so on.

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Executive branch

Secretaries: Secretariat of Energy,

Mines and Government Industries

Secretariat of Health and Welfare

Secretariat of Commerce and Industrial Development

Secretariat of Labor and Social Welfare

Secretariat of National Defense

Secretaries: Secretariat of the Navy Secretariat of Social

Development Secretariat of Public

Education Secretariat of the

Treasury and Public Credit

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Executive branch The agencies of greatest standing in the

executive branch are those with long histories:

In the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, the Secretariat of National Defense (SDN) carried far more weight than it does today, because it was a source of presidential leadership

In the 1950s and 1960s, the Secretariat of Government, an agency devoted to internal affairs, replaced the SDN, as a source of presidential leadership and as a major voice in policy decisions.

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Executive branch Hierarchical decision-making structure Pressure is put on channels of access

to the presidency The president’s private secretary, who

functions as a chief of staff and whose position is essentially a cabinet-level appointment, has the complete confidence of the president: crucial role in the decision-making process

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Executive branch

Echeverria and Lopez Portillo’s cases vs Salinas’s case:

Strong and clear message Publicity Media control Carisma e.g. Solidaridad and liberalization of

economy: Social liberalism

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Executive branch

Challenges of the Zedillo administration:

Pluralism Interest groups more proactive than

reactive Delegation of authority (Federation - State -

Municipal levels) But at the same time, Mexican people want

their president to be decisive, energetic, and even “authoritarian” in behavior

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The legislative branch: bicameral

Chamber of Deputies

500 deputies, three hundred represent districts and two hundred represent parties

They serve three year terms and are elected concurrently

Senate 128 senators, who

serve six year periods

One half of the chamber standing for election every three years

By 2000 year all Senators will be elected concurrently

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The legislative branch

The role of the Congress The meaning of non re-election Forum where public policy can be

debated, even if that forum is limited in scope

Constitutional amendments as a measure of legitimacy

Social and political mobility and leadership fluidity

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The Judicial branch

The Mexican judicial system is structurally patterned after the found in the United States

It has local, state, and national levels, a court of appeals and a supreme court

Supreme Court consists of eleven justices who may serve terms of up to 15 years

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The Judicial branch

They are appointed by the president with two-thirds approval of the Senate

District and circuit court judges are chosen by a six-member Council of the Federal Jucidiary

Challenge: corruption The case of the Attorney general

from the opposition

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Conclusion

Decision making in Mexico is controlled through the executive branch, centralized in the person of the president

The decision-making process listens to demands more through informal internal channels than through formal public channels

The degree of centralization of decision-making power in the president and the executive branch affects the whole government process. Not only does a president have a huge reservoir of political authority, but most Mexicans expect --indeed, react positively to-- his exercise of his powers

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Conclusion

The reliance on informal channels of influence favors certain groups over others. Business interests have been more successful than labor or peasants in having their point of view heard

The powers exercised by the executive since the revolution have left Mexico with weak legislative and judicial institutions

The competition for careers in the executive is more intense than in other branches