Politics: A political reform less about perfecting the system than turning back the clock
It has taken well over 40 years and no less than a dozen political/electoral reforms to untether Mexico from the days of one-party rule to a solid yet imperfect system of electoral democracy with increasing alternation of power between parties. Reforms up until now have gone a long way toward making the system more inclusive, providing representation for minorities and minor parties, creating more equitable conditions in which parties compete, and creating institutions and norms, as well as harmonizing them at the federal, state and municipal levels to allow elections to become truly democratic competitions.
Any such system must continue to evolve in order to address new challenges as they arise and to better engage and represent society, and clearly, many pressing issues need to be addressed. The increasingly pervasive presence of dark money has allowed parties and candidates to spend an estimated ten times more than what is legally permitted and has opened the door to all manner of dirty dealing, with much of the dark money flowing not only from corporate donors but also from organized crime. While the transition to public funding of parties helped level the playing field, it has made the parties less responsive to their supporters and society. And many current regulations are excessive, muddled and punitive.
President López Obrador has been talking for some time of the political reform he would like to implement during the second half of his administration, although he and the leaders of his Morena party have yet to clearly spell out the future reform proposals' scope and objectives. However, what little we know about the reform proposals allow us to pose some hypotheses regarding the intentionality and direction of the changes they seek. And one thing is clear: so far they are not directed at solving major problems except for party and campaign funding, and even that issue is posed in terms of austerity rather than the extent to which parties are disconnected from society or the necessity of rooting out the corruption that accompanies dark money. In fact, what few specifics they have offered suggest a regression to the pre-1979 days of single-party rule.
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