Mexico’s transition to democracy is a process which has been fatally interrupted and is actively being reversed. The point-of-no-return may be identified in September of 2024, when a cluster of mayor constitutional amendments -notably, the demolition of the Federal Judiciary and removal of strict constitutional limits on action by the military in times of peace- was approved. The roots of failure, however, reach back much further. Exploring this “crónica de una muerte anunciada” should take us beyond Mexico, and allow us to look into the tensions inherent to constitutionalism as a project: a dual commitment to popular sovereignty and limited government.

Alejandro Madrazo received an LL.M. (’03) and a J.S.D. (’06) from Yale Law School. Until 2022, Madrazo was a tenured professor at CIDE in Aguascalientes, Mexico, where he founded the interdisciplinary Drug Policy Program. Before becoming a full-time professor in 2009 he practiced constitutional litigation, specializing in high-impact, public interest cases before Mexico’s Supreme Court, winning landmark cases on abortion law, same-sex marriage, tobacco control and anti-trust law. Professor Madrazo has published work on militarization, history of legal thought, constitutional law, sexual and reproductive rights, drug policy, and tobacco control. He is currently Academic Director of Talisis, in Monterrey, Mexico and a member of the Board at Drug Policy Alliance.

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