"text":"<p>Mexico was the site of several advanced Amerindian civilizations -- including the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya, and Aztec -- until Spain conquered and colonized the area in the early 16th century. Administered as the Viceroyalty of New Spain for three centuries, it achieved independence early in the 19th century. Elections held in 2000 marked the first time since Mexican Revolution in 1910 that an opposition candidate -- Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) -- defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He was succeeded in 2006 by another PAN candidate Felipe CALDERON, but Enrique PEÑA NIETO regained the presidency for the PRI in 2012. Left-leaning anti-establishment politician and former mayor of Mexico City (2000-05) Andrés Manuel LÓPEZ OBRADOR, from the National Regeneration Movement (MORENA), became president in 2018.</p> <p>The US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA, or T-MEC by its Spanish acronym) entered into force in 2020 and replaced its predecessor, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Mexico amended its constitution in 2019 to facilitate the implementation of the labor components of USMCA.</p> <p>Mexico is currently the US's second-largest goods trading partner, after Canada. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, high underemployment, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities, particularly for the largely indigenous population in the impoverished southern states. Since 2007, Mexico's powerful transnational criminal organizations have engaged in a struggle to control criminal markets, resulting in tens of thousands of drug-related homicides and forced disappearances.</p>"
"text":"North America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of America, between Belize and the United States and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and the United States"
"text":"Rio Grande river mouth (shared with US [s]) - 3,057 km; Colorado river mouth (shared with US [s]) - 2,333 km<br><br><strong>note:</strong>[s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth"
"text":"most of the population is found in the middle of the country between the states of Jalisco and Veracruz; approximately a quarter of the population lives in and around Mexico City"
"text":"tsunamis along the Pacific coast; volcanoes and destructive earthquakes in the center and south; hurricanes on the Pacific, Gulf of America, and Caribbean coasts <br><br><strong>volcanism:</strong> volcanic activity in the central-southern part of the country; the volcanoes in Baja California are mostly dormant; Colima (3,850 m) is Mexico's most active volcano and is responsible for periodic evacuations of nearby villagers; it has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; Popocatepetl (5,426 m) poses a threat to Mexico City; other historically active volcanoes include Barcena, Ceboruco, El Chichon, Michoacan-Guanajuato, Pico de Orizaba, San Martin, Socorro, and Tacana; see note 2 under \"Geography - note\""
"text":"<p><strong>note 1:</strong> strategic location on southern border of the US; Mexico is one of the countries along the Ring of Fire, a belt of active volcanoes and earthquake epicenters bordering the Pacific Ocean; up to 90% of the world's earthquakes and some 75% of the world's volcanoes occur within the Ring of Fire<br><br><strong>note 2: </strong>the Sac Actun cave system at 348 km (216 mi) is the longest underwater cave in the world and the second longest cave worldwide, after Mammoth Cave in the United States (see \"Geography - note\" under United States)<br><br><strong>note 3:</strong> the prominent Yucatán Peninsula that divides the Gulf of America from the Caribbean Sea is shared by Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize; on the northern coast of Yucatan near the town of Chicxulub lie the remnants of a massive asteroid or comet crater about 150 km (93 mi) in diameter and extending into the Gulf of America; the impact is believed to have initiated a worldwide climate disruption that caused a mass extinction of 75% of the earth's plant and animal species, including the non-avian dinosaurs</p>"
"text":"Spanish only 93.8%, Spanish and indigenous languages (including Mayan, Nahuatl, and others) 5.4%, indigenous only 0.6%, unspecified 0.2% (2020 est.)"
"text":"<br>La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)<br><br>The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information."
"text":"most of the population is found in the middle of the country between the states of Jalisco and Veracruz; approximately a quarter of the population lives in and around Mexico City"
"text":"22.281 million MEXICO CITY (capital), 5.420 million Guadalajara, 5.117 million Monterrey, 3.345 million Puebla, 2.626 million Toluca de Lerdo, 2.260 million Tijuana (2023)"
"text":"scarcity of hazardous waste disposal facilities; natural freshwater resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; urban river pollution from raw sewage and industrial effluents; deforestation; widespread erosion; desertification; serious air and water pollution in urban areas; land subsidence in Valley of Mexico caused by groundwater depletion",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> the government considers the lack of clean water and deforestation as national security issues"
"text":"name may derive from one of the Nahuatl (Aztec) names for the capital city, Metztlixihtlico, which probably meant \"the center of the moon;\" alternatively, it may come from Mexica, the original name of the Aztec people"
"text":"name may derive from one of the Nahuatl (Aztec) names for the capital city, Metztlixihtlico, which probably meant \"the center of the moon;\" alternatively, it may come from Mexica, the original name of the Aztec people"
"text":"proposed by the Congress of the Union; passage requires approval by at least two thirds of the members present and approval by a majority of the state legislatures"
"text":"Chamber of Deputies (Cámara de Diputados)"
},
"number of seats":{
"text":"500 (all directly elected)"
},
"electoral system":{
"text":"mixed system"
},
"scope of elections":{
"text":"full renewal"
},
"term in office":{
"text":"3 years"
},
"most recent election date":{
"text":"6/2/2024"
},
"parties elected and seats per party":{
"text":"National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) (236); Ecologist Green Party of Mexico (PVEM) (77); National Action Party (PAN) (72); Labour Party (PT) (51); Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) (35); Citizens' Movement (MC) (27); Other (2)"
},
"percentage of women in chamber":{
"text":"50.2%"
},
"expected date of next election":{
"text":"June 2027"
}
},
"Legislative branch - upper chamber":{
"chamber name":{
"text":"Senate (Cámara de Senadores)"
},
"number of seats":{
"text":"128 (all directly elected)"
},
"electoral system":{
"text":"mixed system"
},
"scope of elections":{
"text":"full renewal"
},
"term in office":{
"text":"6 years"
},
"most recent election date":{
"text":"6/2/2024"
},
"parties elected and seats per party":{
"text":"National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) (60); National Action Party (PAN) (22); Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) (16); Ecologist Green Party of Mexico (PVEM) (14); Labour Party (PT) (9); Other (7)"
"text":"Supreme Court of Justice or Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación (consists of the chief justice and 11 justices and organized into civil, criminal, administrative, and labor panels) and the Electoral Tribunal of the Federal Judiciary (organized into the superior court, with 7 judges including the court president, and 5 regional courts, each with 3 judges)"
"text":"Supreme Court justices nominated by the president of the republic and approved by two-thirds vote of the members present in the Senate; justices serve 15-year terms; Electoral Tribunal superior and regional court judges nominated by the Supreme Court and elected by two-thirds vote of members present in the Senate; superior court president elected from among its members to hold office for a 4-year term; other judges of the superior and regional courts serve staggered, 9-year terms"
},
"subordinate courts":{
"text":"federal level includes circuit, collegiate, and unitary courts; state and district level courts"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> in April 2021, the Mexican congress passed a judicial reform which changed 7 articles of the constitution and preceded a new Organic Law on the Judicial Branch of the Federation"
"text":"Citizen's Movement (Movimiento Ciudadano) or MC<br>Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Institucional) or PRI<br>Labor Party (Partido del Trabajo) or PT<br>Mexican Green Ecological Party (Partido Verde Ecologista de México) or PVEM<br>Movement for National Regeneration (Movimiento Regeneración Nacional) or MORENA<br>National Action Party (Partido Acción Nacional) or PAN<br>Party of the Democratic Revolution (Partido de la Revolución Democrática) or PRD"
"text":"Atlanta (GA), Austin (TX), Boston (MA), Chicago (IL), Dallas (TX), Denver (GA), El Paso (TX), Houston (TX), Laredo (TX), Miami (FL), New York (NY), Nogales (AZ), Phoenix (AZ), Raleigh (NC), Sacramento (CA), San Antonio (TX), San Diego (CA), San Francisco (CA), San Jose (CA), San Juan (Puerto Rico)"
"text":"Albuquerque (NM), Boise (ID), Brownsville (TX), Calexico (CA), Del Rio (TX), Detroit (MI), Douglas (AZ), Eagle Pass (TX), Fresno (CA), Indianapolis (IN), Kansas City (MO), Las Vegas (NV), Little Rock (AR), Los Angeles (CA), McAllen (TX), Milwaukee (WI), New Orleans (LA), Oklahoma City (OK), Omaha (NE), Orlando (FL), Oxnard (CA), Philadelphia (PA), Portland (OR), Presidio (TX), Salt Lake City (UT), San Bernardino (CA), Santa Ana (CA), Seattle (WA), St. Paul (MN), Tucson (AZ), Yuma (AZ)"
"text":"three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; Mexico's coat of arms (an eagle with a snake in its beak perched on a cactus) is centered in the white band; green stands for hope, joy, and love; white for peace and honesty; red for hardiness, bravery, strength, and valor",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter, has no emblem, and uses lighter shades of green and red"
"text":"adopted 1943, in use since 1854; also known as \"Mexicanos, al grito de Guerra\" (Mexicans, to the War Cry); according to tradition, BOCANEGRA, an accomplished poet, did not want to submit lyrics to a national anthem contest, but his fiancée locked him in a room and refused to release him until the lyrics were completed"
"text":"Historic Mexico City (c); Earliest 16th-Century Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatepetl (c); Teotihuacan (c); Whale Sanctuary of El Vizcaino (n); Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (n); Tehuacán-Cuicatlán Valley (m); Historic Puebla (c); El Tajin (c); Historic Tlacotalpan (c); Historic Oaxaca and Monte Albán (c); Palenque (c); Chichen-Itza (c); Uxmal (c)"
"text":"<p>upper-middle-income economy; highly integrated with US via trade and nearshore manufacturing; weak domestic demand, fiscal consolidation, and trade uncertainty contributing to sluggish growth; low unemployment; challenges from income inequality, corruption, and cartel-based violence</p>"
"note":"<b>note:</b> central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenses converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated"
"text":"telecom reform in 2013 ended a quasi-monopoly; now 885 TV stations and 1,841 radio stations, most privately owned; foreign satellite and cable operators are available; completed transition to digital in 2016 (2022)"
"text":"the Mexican Armed Forces (Fuerzas Armadas de México)are divided between the Secretariat of National Defense and the Secretariat of the Navy:<br><br>Secretariat of National Defense (Secretaria de Defensa Nacional, SEDENA): Army (Ejercito), Mexican Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Mexicana, FAM), National Guard (Guardia Nacional); Secretariat of the Navy (Secretaria de Marina, SEMAR): Mexican Navy (Armada de Mexico (ARM), includes Naval Air Force (FAN), Mexican Naval Infantry Corps (Cuerpo de Infanteria de Marina, Mexmar or CIM))<br><br>Secretariat of Security and Civilian Protection/SEDENA: National Guard (2025)",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> the National Guard was formed in 2019 of personnel from the former Federal Police (disbanded in December 2019) and military police units of the Army and Navy"
"text":"the Mexican military inventory includes a mix of domestically produced and imported weapons and equipment from a variety of mostly Western suppliers, particularly the US; a considerable portion of its inventory, such as ships and fighter aircraft, are older, secondhand items from the US; over the past decade, the Mexican military has made efforts to acquire more modern equipment; Mexico's defense industry produces some naval vessels and light armored vehicles, as well as small arms and other miscellaneous equipment (2023)"
"text":"18 years of age (16 with parental consent) for voluntary enlistment for men and women; 18 years of age for compulsory military service for men (selection for service determined by lottery); conscript service obligation is 12 months; those selected serve on Saturdays in a Batallón del Servicio Militar Nacional (National Military Service Battalion) composed entirely of 12-month Servicio Militar Nacional (SMN) conscripts; conscripts remain in reserve status until the age of 40; cadets enrolled in military schools from the age of 15 are considered members of the armed forces; National Guard: single men and women 18-30 years of age may volunteer (2024)",
"note":"<strong>note: </strong>as of 2023, women comprised about 10% of the active-duty Army, Air Force, and Navy, and about 14% of the National Guard"
"text":"the Mexican military is responsible for defending the independence, integrity, and sovereignty of Mexico, as well as providing for internal security, disaster response, humanitarian assistance, and socio-economic development; internal security duties are a key focus, particularly combating narcotics trafficking and organized crime groups, as well as border control and immigration enforcement; the constitution was amended in 2019 to grant the president the authority to use the armed forces to protect internal and national security, and courts have upheld the legality of the armed forces’ role in law enforcement activities in support of civilian authorities through 2028; the military also provides security for strategic facilities, such as oil production infrastructure, and administers most of the country's land and sea ports and customs services, plus a state-owned development bank; in addition, President LÓPEZ OBRADOR placed the military in charge of a growing number of infrastructure projects, such as building and operating a new airport for Mexico City and sections of a train line in the country’s southeast (2025)"
"text":"the AEM’s focus is on coordinating Mexico’s space policy and the country’s commercial space sector, including developing specialists, technologies, and infrastructure, and acquiring satellites; manufactures and operates communications and scientific satellites; conducts research in a range of space-related capabilities and technologies, including satellites and satellite payloads, telecommunications, remote sensing, robotics, Earth and weather sciences, astronomy, and astrophysics; has relations with a variety of foreign space agencies and commercial space industries, including those of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, the European Space Agency (ESA) and its member states (particularly France, Germany, and the UK), India, Peru, Russia, Ukraine, and the US; leading member of the Latin American and Caribbean Space Agency (ALCE) (2024)",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> further details about the key activities, programs, and milestones of the country’s space program, as well as government spending estimates on the space sector, appear in the Space Programs reference guide"
"text":"Gulf Cartel (CDG); Jalisco Cartel New Generation (CJNG); Northeast Cartel (CDN); The New Family Michoacana (LNFM); Sinaloa Cartel; United Cartels (CU)",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in the Terrorism reference guide"
"text":"35,755 (Honduras), 13,531 (El Salvador) (mid-year 2022); 113,108 (Venezuela) (economic and political crisis; includes Venezuelans who have claimed asylum, are recognized as refugees, or have received alternative legal stay) (2023)"
"text":"386,000 (government's quashing of Zapatista uprising in 1994 in eastern Chiapas Region; drug cartel violence and government's military response since 2007; violence between and within indigenous groups) (2022)"
