From the State against the State: The Pact for Mexico and the 2013–14 Energy Reform

In 2013–14, a paradigm-changing energy reform ended the Mexican state’s monopoly over hydrocarbon exploration, exploitation, and distribution. Paradoxically, it was spearheaded by the PRI (Partido Revolucionario Institucional), the same political party that institutionalized resource nationalism and turned Pemex into Mexico’s foremost symbol of revolutionary nationalism and sovereignty. This article traces the overlapping processes that made the energy reform possible and imaginable. It argues that divisions within the institutional Left, a co-opted oil workers’ union leadership, changes within the PRI in the context of democratization and neoliberalization, and some degree of corruption were crucial for passing the reform. More generally, it highlights the shifting role and implications of resource nationalism in Mexican political economy. It emphasizes the difficult political work and degree of contingency that are involved in the specific ways that neoliberal principles are negotiated, contested, and translated into policy reforms.