This editorial by Julio Hernández López appeared in the May 5, 2025 edition of La Jornada, Mexico’s largest leftist daily newspaper.
At least based on the declarations in Claudia Sheinbaum’s letter to Morena (which are relevant in that they are the position of the President of the Republic and a formal agreement of Morena’s National Council), factions within the governing party should be forced to correct their behavior and tone down their ambitions: think of Adán Augusto López Hernández, Andrés Manuel López Beltrán, Ricardo Monreal-Pedro Haces, Mario Delgado and what remains of Marcelo Ebrard’s group, which is still lurking, just to give a few examples.
Without naming names, but with references that naturally indicate certain Morena figures and groups, the current inhabitant of the National Palace made observations and established ethical, political and electoral guidelines through a long letter that includes the paradox of asking Morena not become a state party, when the defininitive discussions at the aforementioned National Council meeting were concerned precisely with the letter of the virtual head of state or, at least, of the powerful expansive 4T government (which already concentrates the largest and most influential portion of state institutions).
As a militant on leave, a similar status to what Andrés Manuel López Obrador wielded during his six-year term, President Sheinbaum issued a doctrinal and practical proclamation that should signify her assumption of real command of the “green” party and entail unavoidable operational consequences. However, resistance from empowered factions is strong, and they’ve felt unceremoniously strong enough to refuse to obey or dilute instructions from the head of the second tier of the 4T in the past.
The President’s phrasing alone constitutes a recognition of the reality that the Morena base consistently denounces, but its elites refuse to listen to or accept. Sheinbaum rejected the misuse of resources (Adán Augusto?), the rental of private planes and helicopters (Monreal and Haces?), armored vehicles (countless cabinet secretaries and governors), unjustified political tourism (Gerardo Fernández Noroña in premium class?), and the ostentation display of jewelry, designer clothes, and cars, as well as dining in luxury restaurants, arrogance (Cuauhtémoc Blanco?), and pompous official events.
Among the agreements derived from the Claudista letter, the prohibition on receiving funds from private entities for campaigning for candidacies stands out. The president of the Council, Governor Alfonso Durazo (another example to analyze when urging Morena not to become a state party), said that in this organization, raising one’s hand (to seek a nomination) is acceptable, but not to the detriment of other members.
It’s difficult to separate these statements from what Senator Andrea Chávez repeatedly did, until recently, during her very early campaign for the Chihuahua governorship, accepting contributions from business leaders to bring medical services to the population. It’s also difficult not to understand this blunt prohibition as a message to Senator López Hernández’s group, which is reticent to Claudia, and which includes the northern senator.
On the issue of drug trafficking and white-collar trade, it must be said that the pressing reality leaves little hope for the genuine implementation of the president’s promises. Openly criminal and openly corporate money have already taken root at the heart of partisan and electoral activity in general, with hopes of greater returns when such capital supports candidates seeking power.
It’s a long journey from words to deeds, goes a popular saying applicable to these presidential instructions and National Council agreements, and it remains to be seen whether President Sheinbaum is truly on the path to seizing party power and correcting several evident distortions.
Julio Hernández López is a columnist for La Jornada and the head of the news and opinion platform Astillero.