Generals at the Gates

México's Military Transformation tells how the armed forces became a dominant political and economic force, and the profound consequences this holds for migration, civil society, and the future of democracy in México.

On any given day, nearly a quarter of a million soldiers, marines, and national guardsmen patrol the streets of México. Tens of thousands are tasked with detaining migrants, policing communities, making arrests, and quietly managing the illegal drug trade. But their influence reaches far beyond law enforcement. Today, generals and admirals control customs houses, airports, railways, ports, even a national airline and luxury hotels - embedding the military deep within the country's civilian and economic life.

When Andrés Manuel López Obrador took office in 2018, he stunned allies and critics alike by placing the armed forces at the center of his political agenda. Since then, México's military has accumulated a level of power unseen in the country's modern history.

Long shrouded in secrecy, the armed forces emerged from the legacy of the Revolution as "the people in uniform," policing both narcotics and dissent. Now, a new generation of generals stands among the chief beneficiaries of México's progressive turn.