Mexican elections reveal frustration with mainstream political parties

After weeks of violence and protests, Mexico successfully held elections for political officials yesterday, with thousands of soldiers and police on guard. Some municipalities’ votes may be annulled as a result of ballot burning and other disturbances during the elections.

According to preliminary results, the ruling PRI (Institutional Revolutionary Party) and two allied parties likely will win the majority in Mexico’s congress by a narrow margin. The Wall Street Journal reported this year’s results were more fragmented than in previous years.

Chris Wilson, deputy director of the non-partisan Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute, said the triumph of small parties and the victory of independent candidate Jaime Rodriguez in Nuevo León showed Mexicans’ discontent and desire for change: “It’s a rejection of the major political parties.” Rodriguez became Mexico’s first independent governor after a legal reform last year allowed independent candidates.

Rodriguez promised to combat corruption, vowing to appoint an anti-corruption prosecutor to investigate the previous governor’s administration. Nicknamed “El Bronco” for his reputation of bucking the system, Rodriguez was part of PRI for 30 years before becoming independent.

Rodriguez’s victory may encourage more independent candidacies for the 2018 presidential election, which could threaten the monopoly of the traditional political parties, the Journal noted.

After Mexico elected President Enrique Peña Nieto in 2012, he brought together the three major political parties to pass more than 10 major reforms, including constitutional changes.

“That momentum started to slow down last year with scandal after scandal,” Wilson said. Last year, local police and gangs covertly murdered 43 university students. Education reforms took power from teachers’ unions and gave it to the federal government. Mexicans are fed up with what they see as “business as usual,” Wilson said.

The newly elected officials will face activists, think tanks, and non-profits pushing for government reforms like the recently-enacted anti-corruption bill in Nuevo León. Wilson celebrates that increased citizen involvement: “That’s what gives me hope.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.