ABSTRACT
Scholars have questioned the successfulness of Mexico’s democratic transition given its history of authoritarian single-party rule, but the question of whether there is a national policy style – and how this might appear under a more democratic regime – has barely been addressed. This contribution examines the last 30 years of Mexican policy-making to determine whether (and if so, how) the centralized approach of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) altered the manner in which policies were designed and implemented after the victory of the National Action Party (PAN) in 2000. One might assume that – following the PAN’s victory and Mexico’s ensuing “transition to democracy” – a defined policy style has finally emerged, one that is more empowered and highly participatory. Despite the empowerment of civil society groups over the preceding decades, however, policy design and implementation remain highly centralized, with authority delegated through a cumbersome system of intergovernmental coordination. An uneven model of authority delegation remains in both areas, with subnational governments making decisions in certain policy areas and the federal government in many others. This chapter concludes that no coherent Mexican policy style exists, despite the country’s gradual transition to democracy – a process challenged by the PRI’s return to power in 2000.
