Is Mexico’s Democracy Slipping?                             Yehyun Kim

Why choose this case for study:

Mexico is a fascinating and critical case for this study democratic backsliding. I believed this country is often seen as a successful case of democratization, but today it has had such serious challenges. I argue that Mexico is the perfect case to analyze non-state actors, for the concept of democracy back sliding. Mexico is facing a challenge in which drug cartels weaken their state’s ability properly. Which means Mexico’s challenges are deeply rooted in security issues and the government’s losing monopoly on power. I also choose because of its unique historical background and close relationship with the U.S unlike my back-up cases (Brazil and Hungary). I will use these data from the V-Dem Institute and Freedom House to prove how political rights have declined in recent years. 

Introduction

After seven decades of one party rule under the PRI (Partido Revolucionario Instituciona), Mexico transitioned to a multi party democracy in 2000. However, Mexico’s political stability is threatened by powerful non-state actors. My case study will explore how these powerful non-state actors—specifically drug cartels—are affecting the stability of Mexican governance and their impact on democracy. My argument is that Mexico is a critical case for studying democratic backsliding because its democratic institutions are being eroded from the inside by the non-state actors engaging in violence and corruption. The issue is the government losing its monopoly on power to these criminal organizations.

The Failure of Accountability

To understand why Mexico’s democracy is struggling, it is important to look at the two key concepts of accountability that should exist in a healthy state.

1. Vertical Accountability’ (Elected officials ↕ Citizens): This refers to the relationship between elected officials and citizens. However, in Mexico today, this process is corrupted because cartels use violence to control the citizens by threats and it prevents society from true democratic demand.

2. ‘Horizontal Accountability’ (Executive ↔ Legislative ↔ Judicial): This means that different branches of government should keep check each others do to prevent government corruption. However, in Mexico, this system is failing because the cartel uses “Plata o Plomo” (silver or lead) to bribe or threaten the government. What happens after judicial branches can no longer monitor the executive power, the overall corruption beginning from the interior oversight. It causes other branches to slightly disappear. 

The Legacy of PRI:

We have to essentially look at the historical context of Mexican governance. The PRI ruled from 1929 to 2000, but it wasn’t like the current situation like North Korea. They actually had elections like other democratic countries do, but the PRI always won, and this created the legacy of “perfect dictatorship.” Even though they have different parties now, the old ways of doing business still haunt their system into corrupting democracy. 

The New Threat: Cartels & Accountability: 

The rising drug cartel is the most significant challenge to Mexico’s policy stability.  These non-state actors are not just organizations that commit crime; they actively interfere with democratic aside by accessing the candidate losing their control to influencing local administration. This creates a “shadow governance” where formal democratic rules are replaced by the interest of criminal groups. 

Data & Expert Analysis:

To prove this, I’m analyzing quantitative & qualitative data from these credible sites.

V-Dem (Varieties of Democracy) Institute: Their charts show Mexico’s democratic trends through quantitative data. It shows Mexico’s Liberal Democracy Index has been dropping.

Freedom House (Mexico Report): Their findings helped to analyze the current state of political rights in Mexico. The report confirms my argument that organized crime limits the political rights of citizens and freedom of the press. 

The Wilson Center (Mexico Institute): Expert analysis about Mexican

governance well. This analysis shows how the relationship with the U.S. affects this. Through this data, we can see that while the U.S wants a stable neighbor, the drug trade makes stability extremely impossible.

Conclusion

After analysis and research about Mexico’s democracy, this country is at the crossroads politically. Mexico’s current situation is typical of how democratic backsliding can occur even without a formal coup or a single dictator. Through my analysis, I tried to demonstrate the erosion of horizontal and vertical accountability to create a state of “shadow governance.” Ultimately, the Mexican case provides vital insights of the diverse and severe ways of democracy erosion, proving that when a state loses its monopoly on power by non-state actors, the quality of democracy collapses as well.