INSIGHT LATIN AMERICA Mexico What’s the issue?


President López Obrador, who was elected in 2018, announced that during his six-year term no new


licences would be granted to open any new casinos in Mexico. Since then he has renewed his push against the industry and has now proposed a complete ban on slots. So, what has the President of Mexico got against gambling?


In September 2019


Andres Manuel López Obrador or AMLO, as the president is widely known, was the first leftist candidate to be elected president in Mexico since the 1980s and vowed to tackle corruption and gang related crime in the nation, as well as to improve the conditions for the nation’s poor.


After more than five years in office he has managed to keep a high approval rating of around 60 per cent. Tis is despite failing to deliver on many of his campaign promises giving rise to him often being referred to as the “Teflon president.” One of his slogans famously included “Abrazos, No Balazos” (“Hugs, Not Bullets”), as a way to end the war on drugs.


Te war was launched back in P68 WIRE / PULSE / INSIGHT / REPORTS


2006 by President Calderon (2006-2012) who launched an army-led crackdown on drug gangs within days of taking power. However, López Obrador pledged to address the problem of organized crime by prioritising job creation and educational opportunities and reducing the size and scope of responsibilities held by the military.


Instead of taking Mexico’s army off the streets AMLO has increasingly relied on the armed forces to deal with organised crime and militarization continues to advance. Furthermore during his term in office violent crime in the country has remained at terrifyingly high levels while wide swaths of Mexico are under the de-facto control of drug cartels.


[Obrador] announced that during his six- year term no new licenses would be


granted to open any new casinos in


Mexico. According to local media sources, the end of the


licenses for new gambling operations was part of a gesture to Cardinal Rogelio Cabrera, then serving as head of the


Mexican Episcopate.


However, he has delivered on many of his promises. Te party he founded, Morena (National Regeneration Movement), was launched over 10 years ago and one of its primary aims was to reduce inequality. Labour reforms and an increase funding for social programs have increased the incomes of many Mexican families, helping to reduce poverty overall. Indeed the number of Mexicans living in poverty has fallen from 52 million to 47 million during his term in office while reforms have led to the lowest average unemployment rate in the country’s history.


When it comes to gambling his message has been consistent. In September 2019 he announced that during his six-year term no


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