1. AP comparative government
Mexico
AP comparative government

2. Overview
Mexico is a federal republic, but state and local governments have very little power or resources
The executive branch historically holds the majority of power while the legislature and judiciary followed the executive’s lead
According to the Constitution of 1917, the political structure of Mexico is supposed to resemble the U.S.
They have three branches of government who theoretically can check and balance each other
They have a president, a bi-cameral legislature, and governors of states
The Constitution is easily amended and the government is defined by a strong executive

3. Executive
Since the formation of the PRI a president, through the patron-client system, was virtually a dictator for his sexenio
The incumbent always selected his successor, appointed officials to all positions of power in the government and PRI, and named PRI candidates for governors, senators, deputies, and local officials
Until the mid 1970’s, Mexican presidents were considered above criticism
In 2000 Vincente Fox, a combined PAN/PRD candidate, won the presidency
Fox tried to destroy the patron-client system and further democratize Mexico

4. The Bureaucracy
About 1.5 million people work within the federal bureaucracy
This includes school staffs, state-owned industry, and semi-autonomous agencies of government as well as agents in state and local governments
Employees are paid very little, but those at higher levels of the bureaucracy have great power
Under the PRI, the para-statal (government owned industry) sector, composed of semiautonomous or autonomous government agencies, was huge
PEMEX is the state-owned petroleum company that has both helped and hurt the development of Mexico’s economy throughout it’s history

5. Legislature The Mexican legislature is bicameral
There is a 500 member Chamber of Deputies and a 128 member Senate
All legislators are directly elected
Deputies have 3 year terms and senators have 6 year terms
Some Duma some deputies are elected from single-member districts (300) and some are elected by proportional representation (200)
The Mexican Senate is directly elected by a combination of electoral methods: three senators are elected from each of 31 states and the federal district (Mexico City) and the remaining seats are selected through proportional representation
While this legislature strongly mimics the U.S. legislative process, the PRI held a strong grip on the legislative process

6. Legislature
In the 2000 election the PRI’s strong hold on the legislature slipped to a slim plurality
In 2006 the PRI lost control of the legislature, but was able to establish a majority again in by forming a coalition with the minority Green Party
The amount of women in the legislature has risen to 22.6% of deputies and 17.2% of senators
This is a result of a 1996 law requiring parties to sponsor women candidates. At least 30% of the candidates must be women
The PRI has a self imposed quota of 50%

7. Judiciary
Mexico does not currently have an independent judiciary, and has no system of judicial review
Mexico follows a code of law, not common law
The Constitution of 1917 is extremely easy to amend and does not have the same legitimacy as the U.S. Constitution
Mexico has both federal and state courts, but since most laws are federal, states play a subordinate role
The Supreme Court is the highest federal court and technically has the power of judicial review even though it is never used

8. Judiciary Judges are appointed for life
Judges however resign at the beginning of each sexenio allow the president to place his loyalists on the bench
PRI president Ernesto Zedillo tried to strengthen the courts by emphasizing rule of law
Citizens are now increasingly using the courts to fight against government corruption
The general perception though, is that judges are corrupt and every level
There has been a push for court reform in which there are oral arguments, instead of just the filing of paper work

9. Military
For most of the 19th and during the early 20th century, the military dominated the government
Until the 1940’s all presidents had been military generals
The military has since developed into a disciplined force with professional officers
The military was de-corrupted by continually moving generals so that they were unable to build regional support for revolutions
There are corruption issues with drug cartels using the patron-client system to avoid persecution