The Importance of Governing: The Administration of Enrique Peña Nieto and the Fall of the PRI

Abstract

Despite its long-standing disrepute and the loss of executive power for the first time in 2000, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) managed to maintain a prominent political position among the electorate, as evidenced by its continued representation in the federal Congress and state governments. Its presence in the states, control over its electoral machinery, and the cultivation of local leadership around Enrique Peña Nieto enabled the party to regain the presidency in 2012. The new administration received favorable evaluations, which allowed it to propose policy initiatives and persuade opposition actors–helping the PRI to reclaim political ground. However, corruption scandals involving the president, his close associates, and several governors, along with his inability to respond effectively to political crises–most notably the disappearance of the Ayotzinapa students–ultimately damaged not only the image of the president and his administration, but also that of the PRI, which has since experienced a steady decline in political standing. This article examines the relationship between Peña Nieto’s government and the party that brought him to power, under the premise that the executive’s actions, errors, and omissions have consequences for public perceptions of the party organization from which he emerged.