THE CRAFTSMANSHIP OF POLITICS: NEGOTIATING THE 2014 POLITICAL-ELECTORAL REFORM IN MEXICO

Abstract

After the presidential election of July 2012, won by the PRI, the prospectsfor achieving meaningful changes in Mexico were not promising.The more pluralistic and competitive political environment developedin recent years had made increasingly dificult the creation of legislativemajorities needed to produce major reforms. On the other hand,there was still unease and mistrust among political actors. The governmentand the opposition parties negotiated the Pact for Mexico, amultiple-issue agreement which provided the basis for pushing for anambitious reform agenda, including a political-electoral component.The article theorizes that given the existence of formal constraints, politicalactors seek and build alternative mechanisms to provide viabilityand functional capability to the political system.