AP Comparative Government Review Questions (Mexico)

How were Presidential candidates in Mexico chosen prior to 1997? How are they chosen today?

They were chosen by the incumbent President, but after 1997 by party primaries.

From which class are Mexico's political elites drawn? Why is this a problem?

Political elites are largely drawn from the upper-middle-class and usually politically connected and often from "capitalinos" from the Mexico City capital. There is not enough broad based representation of society.

What are the full names and initials of the major parties in Mexico? Where do each stand on the political spectrum from left to right?

Institutional Revolutionary Party or PRI which is today in the middle, National Action Party or PAN which today is slightly on the right, Democratic Revolutionary Party or PRD which is on the left and the National Regeneration Movement or MORENA on the far left.

What was the demographic shift that negatively affected PRI candidates? Why?

Increased movement from rural areas into the cities meant that many more Mexicans were separated from PRI's hierarchical clientelistic networks or "camarillas" and became better educated and informed voters who often voted for opposition parties.

What were some of the major political reforms of Ernesto Zedillo? How did these reforms affect the presidential election in 2000?

Refusing to name a successor candidate for President, giving more legislative authority to Congress, instituting an independent apolitical election commission, etc.

How did PRI's economic policies affect the presidential election of 2000? Why?

Economic policies, prompted by a structural adjustment program to access IMF bailouts, necessitated cuts in public spending, reduction in parastatals, floating of the peso with resulting devaluation, and higher interest rates. Each of these measures led to economic hardships which were blamed on PRI and led to the first loss in 71 years of a PRI presidential candidate in 2000.

Who was the first non-PRI candidate to be elected President in 2000? Why was he less than effective? Who succeeded him from the same political party? What challenges did he face?

Vicente Fox. Because he lacked a congressional majority, Fox faced a divided government which made it difficult to pass legislation through Congress. Fox was succeeded by Felipe Calderon who again faced the challenges of a divided government and the costly war on drugs that resulted in over 60,000 deaths.

Who is the current President of Mexico? Which party is he from? Why was he able to win in the July 2012 presidential election?

Enrique Peña Nieto of PRI is the current President of Mexico. He was able to defeat the PAN candidate, Josefina Vázquez Mota, as PAN was blamed by voters for the 60,000+ deaths from Felipe Calderon's war on drugs. The PRD candidate, Andres Manuel López Obrador lost due to weaker support outside the party's stronghold of Mexico City and due to a radical leftist reputation.

What trends were noted in the 2015 mid-year election? What challenges does this pose for major parties?

PRI maintained its position as having the largest number of seats in Congress albeit without a majority. But this election marked the first time that independent candidates were allowed to run and marked a victory by one such candidate, Jaime "El Bronco" Rodríguez, who became governor of Nuevo León where Mexico's 2nd largest city, Monterrey, is located. His anti-corruption campaign appealed to voters in a trend that may presage problems for major political parties. Prior to this election, PRD split resulting with a new party, Morena, emerging under the

prior PRD presidential candidate, Andres Manuel López Obrador. As a result, PRD was the big loser in the election. The base of support for the left appears to have been greatly weakened.

What is the structure of Mexico's government?

A presidential system with autonomous levels of government: legislative, executive and judicial within a federal system with a strong federal government, 31 states plus the federal district of Mexico city with states divided into municipios which are similar to county governments in the U.S.

What is the weakest level of Mexico's federal government? Why? What has been the consequence?

Municipios are the weakest part of the federal government. The federal government receives the most funding, the states a much smaller amount and municipios receive the least funding. The consequence has been "political centralism", a strong federal government that has contributed to the political stability of the state but issues at the local level).

How would you describe the structure of Mexico's legislative branch? Specify the names of its parts.

Bicameral legislature. Mexico's Congress consists of an Upper House called a Senate and lower-house called The Chamber of Deputies.

Why was "presidentialism" a major feature of Mexico's government during the 70 year period of PRI domination?

Because of the power of "dedazo": the ability of the President to appoint key officials: governors, judges, and even his successor, thereby controlling the party and the administration and also because of PRI's majority in the legislature.

How would you describe the electoral method used for Mexico's legislature? Given this structure, how was PRI able to maintain its dominance of the legislature? How has that situation changed since the late 1990s?

A mixed electoral system or hybrid electoral system. PRI was able to maintain a legislative majority due to its clientelistic networks and electoral support. Support for PRI diminished due to the austerity measures and electoral reforms of the Zedillo administration.

Which factors have accounted for party discipline in Mexico? Which country does this resemble and why?

Office holders, prior to electoral reforms, served one 6-year term of office and were beholden to their party to determine their next posting. This resembles Britain's Parliament in that political parties in Britain determine where candidates run for election.

Describe two significant ways in which the judicial system in Mexico differs from the U.S. including the concept of "Amparo". What are some issues with Mexico's legal system?

Mexico's system is based on Roman and Napoleonic civil code and not on legal precedent. While not allowing lawsuits for punitive damages, it does allow legal actions based on violations of constitutional rights or Amaparo. It is highly bureaucratic, inefficient and slow. Arrests lead to lengthy incarceration in terrible conditions as "guilty until proved innocent" but ultimately result in low conviction rates.

How has the role of Mexico's military differed from the military role in other Latin American countries? What evidence is there that this role remains unchanged?

Mexico's military has remained out of politics even with the transfer of power from the PRI to PAN in 2000.

What is "dependency theory"? What alternative approach to economic growth is offered in structural adjustment?

Dependency theory is the concept that resources flow from underdeveloped states to wealthy states, enriching the latter at the expense of the former. It encourages economic nationalism with the development of parastatals. A structural adjustment is a neoliberal approach to economic development that includes a mix of policies such as reducing government debt and public spending, slashing inflation, selling off state-owned enterprises, allowing free exchange rates, and reducing tariffs and duties.

Up to 1997 how was policy-making done in Mexico? How is it done today?

Largely with the direction of the President in consultation with PRI. Since 2000 no party has had a majority in the legislature and so policymaking is subject to temporary coalitions in the legislature.

In which way is Mexico not typical of a third world country?

It has a fairly legitimate, democratic, long-lasting regime.

What has been a major influence on Mexican political culture since the early 20th century?

Strong nationalism emanating from the Mexican Revolution of 1910.

Prior to 1997 how could Mexican political elites be compared to political elites in China?

Both were from well connected political families and, specifically connected to the ruling party.

How did the Constitution of 1917 contribute to a change in the political culture of Mexico?

It resulted in the absolute secularization of the Mexican state despite the pervasive influence of Catholicism.

How can we know that Mexico is transitioning to a more substantive democracy? Provide at least two reasons.

Free and fair elections, more open and free media, a growing civil society with open channels of access.

What is Mexico's major challenge for the future? What have conflicts in the Chiapas and Oaxaca illustrated about this challenge?

The economic divide between rich and poor/Chiapas and Oaxaca illustrate the divide between the prosperous northern states and the poverty-stricken largely Amerindian southern states.

Why are there concerns about the potential risks of NAFTA for Mexico? How and where have those concerns led to outbreaks of violence?

Concerns that imported crops will make Mexico's agricultural goods uncompetitive: one of the reasons for the revolt by Zapatistas in the Chiapas in 1994 when NAFTA went into effect.

Which countries are members of NAFTA? How is NAFTA different from the EU?

U.S.A., Canada and Mexico. NAFTA is not a supranational organization but a regional trade organization. The EU is able to engage in many more areas that affect members sovereignty: human rights, standardization, monetary policy, labor movements, etc.

Describe a major legal reform during the administration of President Ernesto Zedillo? What limitation did the reforms have?

Reduced the number of Supreme Court justices from 26 to 11 and established tenures of 15 year terms. A limitation was that the reforms only applied to the federal Supreme Court and not to lower courts.

Why was narcotics trafficking such an important issue for President Felipe Calderon?

It threatened the legitimacy of the government by its corruption of the "narcos-politicos" and police. Over 70,000 deaths from his drug war contributed to the defeat of PAN in the 2012 presidential election.

How did actions by the administration of President Vicente Fox improve government accountability and transparency?

He signed a transparency law that made all government information publicly available.

What is the Pact for Mexico? Describe some of its major initiatives.

The Pact for Mexico is a series of reform initiatives begun in 2012 by President Peña Nieto with a coalition of PRI, PRD, and PAN legislators. It has resulted in a series of major reforms in education, energy, telecommunications, political/electoral, etc.

What have relations been like between church and state since end of the colonial period?

Occasionally flared into open confrontation due to anti-clericalism.

What are some sources of political legitimacy in Mexico?

The connection of the state with its revolutionary origins, the democratic institutions of the 1917 constitution, and the government's role in promoting economic growth.

Under which Mexican president did the government gain popularity with the Mexican peasants and why?

President Cardenas...due to ejidos or land grants.

What does the PRI stand for and how was it able to dominate Mexican politics for so long?

Institutional Revolutionary Party/was able to dominate due to clientelism or patron-client relationships with unions and peasants i.e. the patron, or PRI, offers resources to clients in exchange for political support.

What are para-statals and why were they created? Give an example of Mexico's major para-statal in the oil and natural gas industry.

Para-statals are semi-autonomous or autonomous government agencies which produce goods and services that were created to further economic development. Pemex is the major para-statal in the oil and natural gas industry.

What is import substitution industrialization (ISI)? Why did Mexico pursue this from the 1940s?

Mexico encouraged domestic industries to supply the domestic market rather than importing. Encouragement came by means of credit and tax credits.

Sexenio

6-year term of Mexican presidents since Cardenas.

Corporatist state

A state in which interest groups become an institutionalized part of the state.

Clientelism

Providing goods and services in exchange for political support.

Tecnicos Vs. Dinosauros

Tecnicos are highly educated members of recent governments are tecnicos while the dinosauros are the old style politicians.

NAFTA

North American Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada and Mexico signed in 1993 under President de la Madrid.

Zapatistas

A guerilla movement in the impoverished Chiapas state that was aimed at obtaining land, democracy, indigenous rights, and repeal of NAFTA.

How has Mexico's geography influenced its politics?

The division of the country by two mountain ranges has made communication difficult and resulted in regional areas and leaders, patrias chicas and caiques.

How did Mexico's pre-colonial and colonial history influence the type of post-colonial governments that developed?

Hierarchical, authoritarian nature of both Amerindian and Spanish governments led ultimately to rule by a succession of caudillos or strongmen after independence.

Who was Benito Juarez and what is he remembered for?

First Amerindian president of Mexico who promoted "La Reforma" or economic and political reforms.

What was significant about the presidency of Porfirio Diaz?

Diaz had Mexico's longest dictatorship called the Porfiriato, but also presided over the initial industrialization of the country.

When and why did the Mexican Revolution occur? Who were some of its most notable leaders?

Broke out in 1910 with reformers trying to stop the Diaz dictatorship/notable leaders were Emiliano Zapata in the southern part of Mexico and Pancho Villa in the north. Lasted for a decade.

What was the significance of the Mexican Revolution?

It helped to create a national identity and formed a source of legitimacy for all Mexican government to follow.

Co-Optation

Incorporating activists into the system while accommodating some of their concerns.