Politics in Our Neighboring State of Chihuahua

Like New Mexico, A History of Corruption 

Bottom Line:  Corruption scandals in Chihuahua have plagued recent governorships after the incumbent governor leaves office, and accusations of complicity by state officials in favoring one or more drug-trafficking organizations, are common in a state where enormous quantities of illicit drugs are transported to the US.  It is undeniable that some recent governors have greatly enriched themselves during their six-year tenure in power.  Former Governor Cesar Duarte is at the moment in the spotlight.  A US federal judge recently validated the Mexican government's request to extradite Duarte from his curent jail cell back to Mexico to face charges of peculation worth about $100 million during his six-year tenure (2010-2016) in office.  This is not new.  Governors in Mexico during the national hegemony of the PRI (which lasted until 2000) were evaluated by the public on whether they had delivered concrete benefits to the population rather than on how much money they might have been stolen; stealing was taken for granted.  In New Mexico, by contrast, while corruption with public funds is widespread and almost certainly growing, it tends to be widely distributed among public and private entities alike, at many institutional distribution points, such as the current scandal at Spaceport New Mexico or in the housing authority scandal of a few years ago or the guardianship scandals of the past few years, or irregularities in regulation control or in the dispensation of state contracts.

The PAN party, right-of-center, has been in power in Chihuahua state since 2016.  In July 2021 Maria Eugenia Campos Galvan of the PAN (better known as Maru Campos) was elected Governor for a six-year non-reelectable term, succeeding Governor Javier Corral, who left office in September of 2021.  The President of the unicameral legislature is also a woman, Georgina Bujanda Rios, also of the PAN.  Prior to 2016, the PRI, a centrist party, had been in power in Chihuahua for the previous 18 years.  The legislature consists of 33 members, 22 of which are elected, as in New Mexico, from single-member districts, and 11 of which are elected in proportion to the statewide party vote.

In Mexico Governors are far more powerful than they tend to be in the U.S., partly because they tend to control the legislature--the proportional representation rules make this highly likely--and partly because they receive most of their budgets from the federal government rather than from state-generated revenues, thus avoiding the need for extensive negotiation among powerful interests and public seeking to minimize taxes or use taxation for social policy. In Northern Mexico, too, since the time of Pancho Villa and the Mexican Revolution more than a century ago, governors are expected to act decisively, and to control their legislatures.  Legislators are allowed to serve only one three-year term, a provision that weakens the ability of legislative leaders to develop institutional power over policy.  There is no such thing as a an independent legislative finance committee, operating year-round with a competent staff, evaluating many areas of policy performance, and negotiating directly with interest groups during the legislative session.  This latter feature is a key difference between Chihuahua and New Mexico, enhancing the relative power of the governor of Chihuahua.

In recent weeks the previous two governors have been in the news and opinion sections of newspapers, for different reasons.  Javier Corral, who left office in September 2021, has been outed as having lied that he was not a citizen of the US as well as Mexico.  Born in El Paso, he never renounced his US citizenship, a fact that, if known, would have made him ineligible to run for office.  He is also accused of leaving a budget deficit of several billion dollars and of using his position to benefit his family members and personal properties.  He has launched a strong media campaign in his own defense.  Upon leaving office in 2016 Cesar Duarte fled to El Paso, where he lived on the lam for two or three years before going even more incognito as Mexican government officials sought to question him about financial misconduct during his tenure in office.  He was subsequently arrested in the US.  Many believe he stole at least twice as much as the $100 million he is accused of misappropriating in documents provided by the Mexican government as part of proceedings to extradite him to Mexico.