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Why is there always a full moon during Easter in Mexico?

By
Andrea Fischer
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Easter full moon over Mexico City
Every year, the full moon in March marks the beginning of the Christian festivities surrounding Easter in Mexico. Here's why. (Instagram)

Year after year, the night sky is illuminated by the full moon’s light during the Easter celebrations in Mexico. This is no coincidence. On the contrary, it’s a decision based on astronomy, which the Catholic Church — and other Christian-affiliated religions — uses as a reference point for scheduling Holy Week celebrations. In our country, anything Easter-related is huge.

As it happens, in religions centered on the worship of Christ, Easter commemorates the series of events surrounding his death and supposed resurrection. According to Christian tradition, around A.D. 33, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after being crucified by the Romans. This event is the reason for religious celebrations throughout the world, as it represents the victory of the Son of God over the forces of evil.

Iztapalapa Passion of Christ
The Iztapalapa borough in Mexico City is world-famous for its public representation of the Passion of Christ, in which live actors reenact the entire biblical passage. (Eneas De Troya/Flickr/Wikimedia Commons)

However, the dates for celebrating Easter have historically been a source of controversy. During the early years of Christianity, there was debate about when it should be celebrated, since it was observed on different days in the East and the West. After centuries of confusion, the Church reached a definitive resolution.

Why is there always a full moon during Easter in Mexico?

The year A.D. 325 marked a turning point for Christianity. The Roman Empire had already made it the official religion for all of its territories. However, the Empire was vast and complicated. The greater part of Europe, Africa and Asia around the Mediterranean Sea were a part of it, as documented by the World History Encyclopedia. To put it in perspective, approximately 40 contemporary countries would be part of what were formerly the domains of Constantine — and consequently, of the new Roman religion. No wonder it was often hard to agree on the holy dates to observe!

It was during the Council of Nicaea, held in the present-day Republic of Türkiye, that the Emperor and high-ranking church officials met to define the foundations of the new Christian faith. This included their fundamental beliefs (from which the Creed, for example, originates) and the important dates that should be celebrated in the life of Jesus.

Of course, Easter Day was among the main talking points. When would Christendom celebrate the resurrection of its Savior, the holiest of the events in their faith?! After days of discussion, the council decided that the first Sunday following the second full moon after the spring equinox was established as the day to begin the Easter festivities. Yes, that was kind of a mouthful, but it’s historically accurate!

The legacy of the Council of Nicaea

In other words, following the Old Farmer’s Almanac records, “the date of Easter  is tied to the relationship between the Paschal Full Moon … and the Church’s fixed date of the March equinox.” 

From then on, massive pilgrimages to Jerusalem were organized to celebrate the Easter festivities in the very place where the events are thought to have taken place. Besides bringing order to the Christian world, it established a new way of life for centuries in the countries where this faith was dominant. The legacy of this decision explains why each full moon occurs precisely during Holy Week.

Full moon over Bellas Artes in Mexico City
Does that mean we’ve celebrated 1700 full moon Easters since the Council of Nicaea? Yes, and it seems that will be the case for as long as Christianity persists. (Isaac Jero/Instagram)

So, no. Mexico is not the only country in the world where there is a full moon during the Easter festivities. The Worm Moon, as the astronomical phenomenon is known, has accompanied these festivities for 1,700 years now!

How is Easter celebrated in Mexico City?

Mexico is no stranger to religious syncretism. On the contrary, it is the basis of our culture and social constructs. Just as Our Lady of Guadalupe is the heiress of Tonantzin, the Mexica Mother Goddess, the Spring Equinox brought religious festivities to be observed in Mexico-Tenoctitlan and her territories. Some neighborhoods remain Indigenous today. And, believe it or not, some pre-Columbian customs are preserved in our everyday lives, even centuries after the fall of the great Mexico-Tenochtitlan.

Something similar happened with the March equinox. In the ancient Mexica pantheon, the god Xipe Tótec was the embodiment of the arrival of spring: the sacred representation of light that triumphs over darkness, and life that returns once winter ends.

During Tlacaxipehualiztli, according to INAH archaeologists, the great festival welcoming spring, involved the ritual flaying of prisoners of war, representing restored life. Literally, by removing the skin of their political adversaries, they brought a message of renewal — and outright terror — to make way for a new annual cycle.

Iztapalapa’s Passion of Christ representation is thought to be a legacy of that spiritual colonization. Since there were already sacred celebrations that the Mexica observed with the arrival of spring, it was easier to incorporate the new Christian customs. There was no better way to instill the new faith — and fear of dissent — than to stage reenactments of this and other biblical passages important to the Church.

Every March, the moon after the equinox is still there, regardless of the religious tradition observed with the arrival of spring.

Andrea Fischer contributes to the features desk at Mexico News Daily. She has edited and written for National Geographic en Español and Muy Interesante México, and continues to be an advocate for anything that screams science. Or yoga. Or both.

 

Canada reaches deal to export potatoes to Mexico, formerly an exclusive privilege of the US

By
MND Staff
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Potatoes
The United States was the sole supplier of potatoes to Mexico for the past 20 years. This agreement ends that exclusive privilege. (Shutterstock)

Mexico and Canada have reached an agreement to allow the export of fresh Canadian potatoes to the Mexican market.

The opening of the market will allow Canadian producers to export high-quality potatoes for consumption or processing in Mexico.

Speaking to CBC TV, Canadian Minister of Agriculture and Agrifood Heath MacDonald called it “a very big deal,” adding that “it is important to the Canadian potato industry across the country.”

The agreement, which had been in the works for nearly three years, will give Canada access to a market that had been dominated by the United States as the sole supplier of potatoes to Mexico for the past 20 years.

“All we asked as Canadians is to have the same access as the U.S. has, with one caveat — ensuring that we had access to the seaway,” MacDonald said, explaining that Canada wants to be able to ship its potatoes both by land and by sea.

Mexico is expected to send Agrifood Health, Safety and Quality agents to Canada in June to carry out phytosanitary inspections before the first shipment is authorized. 

Mexico and Canada have been working to strengthen bilateral trade ahead of the formal review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, which gets underway this week. 

MacDonald led trade missions to Mexico in October 2025 and again last month, working to build a person-to-person relationship with his Mexican interlocutors, Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard and Agriculture Minister Julio Berdegué.

The February trade mission, Canada’s largest to Mexico in decades, featured 390 delegates and over 1,700 business meetings. Mexico will make a reciprocal trade mission to Canada in May, dubbed the Mexico-Canada Trade Mission 2026.

The effort — part of a new bilateral action plan agreed to in February — aims to strengthen regulatory cooperation and facilitate trade between the two nations.

Mexican officials at the announcement of the Mexico-Canada Trade Mission 2026
Mexico and Canada haven’t wasted any time creating new bilateral trade avenues in the lead-up to a contentious USMCA review with the United States. After receiving the largest-ever Canadian trade mission in February, Mexico will make a reciprocal mission to Canada in May, dubbed the Mexico-Canada Trade Mission 2026. (gob.mx)

During the presentation of Trade Mission 2026 in Mexico City last week, Cameron Mackay, Canada’s ambassador to Mexico, emphasized the “value of productive integration, characterized by binational supply chains in technologically complex sectors such as automobiles and aircraft, as well as agrifood products.”

Bilateral trade exceeds US $100 billion, of which US $60 billion corresponds to Canadian investment and more than US $40 billion to annual trade in goods. Potatoes are the fifth-largest crop in Canada, generating revenues of US $2.1 billion in 2024.

With reports from CBC, Infobae and CBN News

UN approves a Mexico-led initiative to curb synthetic drug production

By
MND Staff
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0
UN vote
The approved resolution is part of a broader UN agenda on the threat of synthetic drugs. (UNODC - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime/Facebook)

The United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) has just approved a resolution to prevent the use of specialized equipment and controlled materials in the production of synthetic drugs, following a proposal by Mexico. 

With the official name of “the Resolution on Article 13 of the 1998 United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances,” it was adopted as part of the 69th session of the CND in Vienna on March 13. It specifically targets tableting and encapsulating machines, which are normally used for legitimate purposes in the medical field, but according to Mexico’s Foreign Relations Ministry (SRE), “are being used for the production of synthetic drugs.”

“This Mexican initiative seeks to equip all countries with tools to address the exponential growth in the consumption of synthetic drugs — including those resulting from abuse or misuse of medications — and the consequent adaptations occurring in the production, manufacture, trafficking and sale of these drugs and their precursors,” the SRE said in a statement.

The resolution on Article 13 of the 1988 Convention indicates that these machines, however, must still remain accessible for legitimate medical, scientific and industrial purposes, as its primary goal is to prevent these devices from being diverted into illicit activities, rather than imposing a complete ban on the technology itself. 

Furthermore, it urges countries to “adopt legislative measures to prevent the diversion of tableting and encapsulating machines to the illicit market,” while also ensuring that their legal trade continues without hindrance.

The resolution is part of a broader CND agenda on the threat of synthetic drugs, which also includes resolutions on supply chain integrity, early warning mechanisms and evidence-based public health responses. 

It also follows former Foreign Affairs Minister Alicia Bárcena’s intervention at the UN in 2024, when she called on member states to combat drug trafficking on the further grounds that it fuels illicit economies, violence and phenomena that can be linked to extremism and terrorism. 

The resolution on Article 13 of the 1998 Convention is a concrete tool for the type of cooperation that Bárcena demanded then, strengthening the control of equipment and materials used to manufacture synthetic drugs.

Mexico’s strategy to combat drug trafficking also saw current Foreign Affairs Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente hold a meeting with the head of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, Sara Carter, aimed at strengthening cooperation between both countries in the areas of public health and drug use prevention.

With reports from El Sol de México

Former president AMLO calls on Mexicans to donate money for Cuba in rare public message

By
MND Staff
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Miguel Díaz-Canel and Andrés Manuel López Obrador
AMLO awarded Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel with the Order of the Aztec Eagle in 2023. (@lopezobrador/X)

Former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Saturday issued a call for Mexicans to make monetary donations to a recently created non-governmental organization in order to purchase food and other essentials for the people of Cuba.

His appeal came in a social media post, marking just the third time the ex-president has posted to Facebook and X since leaving office on Oct. 1, 2024.

“I’m retired but it pains me that they’re seeking to exterminate the brotherly people of Cuba due to their ideals of freedom and defense of sovereignty,” wrote AMLO, as López Obrador is widely known.

He was referring to the situation of extreme hardship the people of Cuba are facing amid a U.S. blockade on oil shipments to the Communist-run Caribbean island nation. The Mexican government last month shipped more than 2,000 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Cuba to alleviate shortages of food and other essentials.

AMLO’s post continued: “To those who think it’s someone else’s fight, I remind you what General [Lázaro] Cárdenas said when the Bay of Pigs Invasion occurred: ‘It is not right to claim indifference to their heroic struggle, because their fate is ours.’

“Consequently, I invite everyone to make a deposit into Banorte account 1358451779 of the civil association Humanidad con América Latina [Humanity with Latin America], which was opened by citizens, writers and journalists to purchase food, medicine, oil and gasoline … to help the Cuban people. Everyone should contribute what they can!”

As president, López Obrador made repeated calls for the United States to lift its embargo on Cuba. He visited Cuba in 2022 and received the country’s highest state honor from Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel.

In 2021, AMLO declared that Cuba is an “example of resistance” and asserted that the entire island nation should consequently be declared a World Heritage site.

Claims of corruption follow AMLO’s post 

López Obrador’s post came four days after the newspaper La Jornada published an editorial that announced the creation of the Humanidad con América Latina bank account to collect donations to purchase food, medicine and other essentials for the people of Cuba.

The March 10 editorial was endorsed by more than 200 people, including writers Elena Poniatowska and Laura Esquivel, director of La Jornada Carmen Lira Saade, and the illustrator and artist Carlos Pellicer López, nephew of the poet Carlos Pellicer Cámara, a native of the state of Tabasco and a political mentor of AMLO, who was also born in Tabasco.

CIUDAD DE MÉXICO, 22FEBRERO2024. Carlos Pellicer López durante la ceremonia solemne por la develación de la inscripción de la leyenda: “Carlos Pellicer Cámara, el Poeta de América", en el muro de honor del Senado de la República. FOTO: EDGAR NEGRETE LIRA/CUARTOSCURO.COM
Carlos Pellicer López, along with several other Morena-affiliated intellectuals, published an editorial promoting the Humanidad con América Latina bank account on Sunday. (Edgar Negrete Lira/Cuartoscuro)

Esquivel and Pellicer López were identified as those “responsible” for the editorial, which said that not supporting the people of Cuba at a time when the U.S. government is “seeking to vanquish them through hunger and shortages” would be a “crime.”

Pellicer’s personal email address is listed as the official contact for Humanidad con América Latina.

The online reaction to AMLO’s social media post was mixed, with some people praising the ex-president for bringing attention to the plight of the Cuban people and even sharing details of their deposits to the account of the NGO he promoted. Others questioned why he didn’t do more to help the people of Mexico when he was president, or pointed to the rapid creation of Humanidad con América Latina as a sign of corruption.

On X on Sunday, the journalist and lawyer Gildo Garza wrote:

“#Corruption #Mexico In Mexico there is no human power that can create a civil association and in a matter of days turn it into an authorized donee. That process normally takes three to six months … but now Humanidad con América Latina appears with express authorization. … This reeks of simulation and corruption within [tax agency] SAT. … While [AMLO] speaks of sovereignty and Cuba, in Mexico another trail remains: ‘civil’ structures that end up turning into vehicles of power and money.”

In another X post, Garza wrote that Carlos Peciller, “nephew of AMLO’s political father” and a member of the ex-president’s “own circle,” controls the bank account of Humanidad con América Latina.

“That doesn’t seem like help [for Cuba]. It reeks of opacity and simulation. They continue depositing [money to the account] and maintaining corruption,” he wrote.

The news outlet La Silla Rota said that Peciller is the “legal representative” of Humanidad con América Latina, which was created earlier this year and authorized by SAT to receive donations last Monday.

Prominent journalist Azucena Uresti, who interviewed Garza on Monday, wrote on X that “AMLO has used victims for his benefit.”

“Now he makes a call to support Cuba,” she wrote, “but after the 2017 earthquakes he created the ‘For the others’ trust,” which was supposed to collect money for earthquake victims, but which allegedly funded the campaigns of Morena party candidates at the 2018 election. The National Electoral Institute (INE) fined Morena 197 million pesos for the misuse of trust funds, but the Federal Electoral Institute subsequently revoked the punishment.

All bank accounts must follow rules, says Sheinbaum, before pledging to make a personal donation to the Cuban people

At her Monday morning press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum acknowledged both the La Jornada editorial and AMLO’s social media post.

“I believe the president López Obrador has come out [to make public comments] three times since his political retirement,” said Sheinbaum, who served as a minister in AMLO’s government when he was mayor of Mexico City.

She recalled that her ex-boss and political mentor made public remarks on the day of Mexico’s first-ever judicial elections last June, and appeared on social media last December to promote his new book.

“And this is the third time,” she said, although AMLO also commented on what he called the “kidnapping” of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in January.

Sheinbaum subsequently sought to respond to the questions that have been asked about the bank account created by Humanidad con América Latina, although she didn’t comment on how it obtained such prompt authorization from SAT to collect donations.

“All bank accounts are subject to regulations, this one too,” she said.

“In other words, it won’t be excluded from the rule for deposits. Everything is always audited,” Sheinbaum said.

What López Obrador and many other prominent people did was to issue a “call for solidarity” with the people of Cuba because they are “suffering,” she said.

“And it is suffering that has nothing to do with them, it is suffering that is related to isolation that has been in place for decades in the form of a [U.S.] trade embargo, and recently a fuel blockade,” Sheinbaum said.

Later in her press conference, the president said that Mexico has “always” supported the Cuban people and reiterated that her government will continue to do so.

Asked whether she would make a personal donation to the bank account set up by Humanidad con América Latina, Sheinbaum responded:

“Yes, I think so. I’m going to do it, on a personal basis.”

Garza — the journalist and lawyer who has emerged as a leading questioner of the circumstances surrounding the authorization by SAT of a bank account of an NGO focused on collecting donations to purchase essentials for the people of Cuba — asserted on X that Sheinbaum “didn’t clarify anything” with her remarks on Monday morning.

“She hid the heart of the matter beneath an administrative phrase. Nobody is asking if a bank account exists. The question is how a hastily put-together association found a way to collect public money in record time,” he wrote.

“She didn’t respond [to the questions about] legality. She managed the evasion,” Garza added.

With reports from Infobae, Político MX and La Silla Rota 

Army arrests key cartel operative who exposed location of ‘El Mencho’

By
MND Staff
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1
José 'N' (alias) Pepe
José 'N' (alias) Pepe was one of the main logistics operators of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), according to Mexico's Defense Ministry. (Defensa)

A man who allegedly delivered Nemesio Rubén “El Mencho” Oseguera’s lover to him shortly before the cartel boss was killed in a military operation on Feb. 22 was detained on Sunday, authorities said.

The Ministry of National Defense (Defensa) announced that Mexican Army special forces and National Guard personnel arrested José “N” while they were carrying out “land patrols” in Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, a municipality in Jalisco that is part of the Guadalajara metropolitan area.

Defensa said in a statement that “José ‘N’ (alias) Pepe is considered one of the main logistics operators” of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), which Oseguera founded and led for many years until his death last month.

The ministry also said that the suspect “was the person in charge of transferring the romantic partner of the deceased Rubén Oseguera Cervantes (alias) Mencho to Tapalpa, Jalisco,” where the Feb. 22 military operation occurred.

Defensa said that military personnel seized drugs, weapons and a vehicle from José “N,” who was placed in the custody of the organized crime division of the Federal Attorney General’s Office.

The day after the military operation targeting Oseguera, Defense Minister Ricardo Trevilla Trejo said that authorities determined the location of the CJNG leader after a man delivered one of his “romantic partners” to him.

Trevilla said that on Feb. 20, military intelligence work enabled the location of a “trusted man of one of the romantic partners of ‘El Mencho.'”

That man, he said, transported Oseguera’s lover to a property in Tapalpa, a municipality around 130 kilometers southwest of Guadalajara.

Trevilla said that the woman met with “El Mencho” at the property.

Inside El Mencho’s last hideout in Tapalpa, Jalisco

The next day — the day before Oseguera was killed — the woman left the property “and information was obtained that ‘El Mencho’ remained at that place,” the defense minister said.

Oseguera’s lover has been identified in media reports as Guadalupe Moreno Carrillo. The Mexican military “had photographs of her and maintained close surveillance of properties where she lived in Zapopan and Puerto Vallarta,” according to the news outlet La Silla Rota.

Moreno and Oseguera reportedly began their relationship after the CJNG leader separated from his wife, Rosalinda González Valencia, in 2022.

Asked last Thursday whether El Mencho’s lover had been detained, President Claudia Sheinbaum said she didn’t know, telling reporters that her government would report on the matter at a later date.

The newspaper El Financiero reported on Sunday that Moreno appears in military intelligence reports that were leaked in 2022 by a group of hackers called Guacamaya.

In military reports, she is referred to as a “recurrent companion of ‘El Mencho,’ with regional coordination roles within” the CJNG, El Financiero wrote.

With reports from El Financiero and La Jornada

Wolves return to Durango after 50-year absence in landmark binational conservation effort

By
MND Staff
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The pack of one alpha male, one alpha female and two females (their pups) was transported from the U.S. to Durango last week. (Guerreros Mexicanos/Facebook)

A pack of endangered wolves was released into the wild in the northern Mexican state of Durango on Friday, thanks to collaboration between Mexico and the United States under the Saving Animals from Extinction (SAFE) program.

The reintroduction of the Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) to Durango marks a historic moment for the species, allowing the wolf — to return to its natural habitat of Sierra Madre Occidental after 50 years of absence from the wild. According to Wolf Haven International, there are only 311 Mexican wolves known to be living in the wild today.

The Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) facilitated the return of the four wolves to the forest community of El Tarahumar and Bajíos del Tarahumar, in the municipality of Santa Catarina de Tepehuanes, following the unanimous approval of the community assembly.

“Durango boasts well-preserved forests thanks to the responsible management carried out by ejidos (communal landholdings) and communities, which creates optimal conditions for the return of emblematic species like the Mexican wolf,” said Semarnat Minister for the state of Durango Claudia Hernández Espino.

The pack of one alpha male, one alpha female and two females (their pups) was transported from the U.S. to Durango with support from various governmental and academic institutions, including: The General Directorate of Wildlife (DGVS) of Semarnat, the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa), the National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (Conanp), the Arizona Game & Fish Department and the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, among others. 

The wolves underwent rigorous health inspections before the reintroduction. Now, they will remain in a pre-release enclosure under human care temporarily to allow them to adapt to the environment before their release into the wild.

Once released, the wolves will be monitored via radiotelemetry and camera traps to assess their adaptation and movements. Authorities will also work closely with rural communities to promote coexistence and wildlife conservation. 

Binational SAFE efforts have supported the breeding, reintroduction and conservation of the Mexican wolf since the 1970s. A second pack of wolves is expected to be reintroduced into the Sierra Madre Occidental at a later date, following monitoring and evaluation of the first pack. 

With reports from Milenio and Informador

Following France and Australia, Mexico studies setting a minimum age for social media

By
MND Staff
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Diverse multiethnic kids students having break and using smartphones, sitting at desks in classroom, children playing games and checking social media at school
A minimum age, inspired by Australia's recent adoption of a similar restriction, would drastically change how Mexico's young people spend their free time. (Shutterstock)

The Mexican government is exploring age restrictions on social media, according to Education Minister Mario Delgado. 

In an interview with the news outlet AFP, Delgado said the initiative would aim to protect the mental health of young people, given the lack of regulation by the tech companies that control social media sites. 

Education Secretary Mario Delgado (left), shown here last week with Armando Contreras Castillo, director general of the National Adult Education Institute, has announced that Mexico is taking steps to impose a minimum age for access to social media. (Carlos Maduri/Cuartoscuro)

“The State has the responsibility for the guardianship and education of minors,” Delgado said. “And that’s why we should think about setting certain limits, because I don’t see any responsibility from companies to take charge of this.” 

Mentioning Facebook and TikTok by name, Delgado said the tech companies are only interested in attracting followers at the expense of protecting children. “There are no filters on the content that could affect the emotional health of children,” he said.

The secretary acknowledged that Mexico’s interest in banning young people from social media is a direct result of Australia’s pioneering efforts in recent months.

In December of last year, Australia became the first country in the world to ban social media for children under 16 years of age, followed by France, which lowered the minimum age to 15. As of March 28, Indonesia will also join the trend, becoming the first country in Asia to ban social media platforms for minors younger than 16 years.

Mexico’s potential ban was celebrated by French President Emmanuel Macron, who wrote a short statement in Spanish on his official X account. 

“¡Qué padre! Gracias por unirse al movimiento,” the message said. (“How cool! Thanks for joining the movement.”)

Spain and Denmark are also exploring similar restrictions.   

The federal government has opened a series of consultations with experts, civil society and technology companies to determine the types of restrictions that should be implemented (age limits are not the only available restrictions). According to Delgado, the feedback gathered from these discussions is expected to lead to concrete proposals by June of this year.

“We want [the proposals] to come from the people, drawing on the experience of parents, communities and teachers,” Delgado said. “They should guide us on which restrictions to implement and how to regulate them.” 

At the local level, Jalisco’s Congress is studying a bill that bans the use of social networks by minors under 14 years of age on school grounds. Furthermore, it empowers municipalities to ensure that cafes, shopping centers and other public internet access points have content filters or require informed consent from parents.

In contrast, Australia’s federal law places almost all the burden on the platforms, not on minors or their families. According to the law, social media platforms must take “reasonable steps” to prevent minors under 16 years of age from creating or maintaining accounts, regardless of parental consent. 

With reports from Quadratin Jalisco and El Economista

Mexico’s ‘hot’ cop is the latest merch sensation

By
MND Staff
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Girls look at a flannel blanket with Harfuch's face on it
Some shops say they are turning out up to 150 Harfuch blankets per day to meet demand. (Camila Ayala Benabib/Cuartoscuro)

Mexico is swooning over its top cop — and buying the merch to prove it.

Miniature dolls, plush toys nicknamed “Harfuchitos” and flannel blankets bearing the often shirtless image of Security Minister Omar García Harfuch have surged in popularity after the Feb. 22 raid that killed Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

The 44-year-old official, who is usually seen briefing the nation in a dark suit, now appears on cushions, towels, party decorations and cardboard cutouts in markets across Mexico — and as a Batman-themed doll, as well.

And it’s not only merchandise that is proliferating. On TikTok and other platforms, AI-generated images show the politician promoting products such as hair oil, and apps let users create photos of themselves hugging García Harfuch or lying with him on the grass.

On Mercado Libre, Latin America’s largest e-commerce site, a García Harfuch blanket has ranked among the platform’s bestsellers, while Amazon has offered a bed-sized flannel throw emblazoned with his face.

A report by Reuters said demand now includes customized products printed in small shops as well as factory lines turning out up to 150 blankets a day, with orders spilling into the United States.

“He is Mexico’s crush,” said Carolina García, who sells García Harfuch merchandise she makes with her home printing business in the central state of Tlaxcala. “Of course, we get more orders from women, as gifts, but we’ve also gotten some orders from men.”

“All the ladies love him,” added designer Ingrid Rebeca Sánchez. “They want to sleep with him, they want to dry themselves off with him. He’s Mexico’s new daddy.”

Harfuch beach towel
A 160 cm by 100 cm Harfuch-themed towel. It’s yours for 297 pesos on Mercado Libre. (Mercado Libre)

However, the craze reportedly has a darker edge in the textile hubs of Moroleón and Uriangato, two municipalities in southern Guanajuato where huge clothing markets and street stalls dominate the landscape. There, some vendors have allegedly received warnings from organized crime not to sell items with García Harfuch’s image, according to the newspaper Milenio.

Towels selling for about 100 pesos (US $5.64) and travel blankets from 180 pesos (US $10.15) are often sold only on request.

The emergence of the Batman dolls ties into an older backstory, from 2022, when Green Party lawmaker Jesús Sesma referred to García Harfuch, then Mexico City’s citizen security chief, as a “superhero” and crafted a Batman-modified action figure that went viral and sparked memes.

That also established a template for García Harfuch as a vigilante-style protector that current vendors are now seizing upon.

The sudden merch push comes as early polls and analysts see García Harfuch as a potential presidential contender in 2030, when President Claudia Sheinbaum’s term will end.

With reports from Reuters, Milenio, El Financiero and Forbes México

With 9,500 participants, Mexico City holds world’s largest-ever soccer class

By
MND Staff
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an aerial shot of hundreds of soccer players on an artificial turf set up in Mexico City's Zócalo
Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada said that with this event, the capital officially “kicked off the World Cup.” (@ClaraBrugadaM/X)

Mexico City established a Guinness World Record for the largest soccer class ever on Sunday as 9,500 futbolistas filled the Zócalo as part of a series of promotional events ahead of the FIFA World Cup.

The plaza in front of the National Palace served as a massive training ground with enthusiastic crowds engaging in soccer drills under the guidance of dozens of instructors. Participants kicked balls and took part in coordinated exercises under the guise of promoting sport and community engagement.

While presiding over the international class alongside soccer stars and former members of Mexican national teams, Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada said that with this event, the capital officially “kicked off the World Cup.”

Mexico City will play host to five World Cup games, including the inaugural match on June 11.

Brugada, who joined participants on the pitch, said her government was hoping to send a message of “no to war, yes to peace,” saying, “Today we scored a goal against hatred, inequality and indifference.”

Among the soccer celebrities participating were former national team players Braulio Luna (1998 and 2002 World Cups), Francisco “Kikín” Fonseca (2006 World Cup), Óscar “Conejo” Pérez (2002 and 2010 World Cups), Miguel España (1986 World Cup) and Adrián Chávez (1994 World Cup), as well as several members of Mexico’s 1971 Women’s World Cup squad. 

The event easily surpassed the previous Guinness record set in Seattle in June 2025, when a soccer class brought together 1,038 participants.

Alfredo Arista Rueda, a Guinness World Records judge, confirmed that a record had been set, saying, “You are officially amazing … congratulations.”

“Today we broke this great record … ⁠and showed that we are capable of achieving the extraordinary and the impossible,” Brugada said after receiving the award, adding that “soccer is a universal language, a language of peace that needs no translation.”

This is not the first time Mexico has set a Guinness World Record for an instructional class.

In 2023, Mexico City set a new record with a total of 30,000 registered participants in a boxing class in the Zócalo, a crowd that doubled the record it had established a year earlier.

The soccer class was part of Mexico’s Social World Cup program that aims to bring educational, tourism and cultural activities to communities across the country. 

CIUDAD DE MÉXICO, 15MARZO2026.- Participantes de "La clase de futbol más grande del mundo 2026" realizada en la plancha del zócalo capitalino, la cual se hizo acreedora del World Record Guinness al juntar 9 mil 500 participantes. FOTO: MARIO JASSO/CUARTOSCURO.COM
The Zócalo was outfitted with artificial turf, transforming the historic space into a massive modern soccer pitch. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)

Earlier this month, 4,757 people gathered inside the Víctor Manuel Reyna Stadium in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas, to form the world’s largest soccer jersey.

A third Guinness World Record attempt — a massive collaborative soccer-themed mural — will be made in May.

With reports from El Sol de México, Reuters, The Associated Press and El Universal

Sheinbaum frames electoral reform as fight against political excess: Monday’s mañanera recapped

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MND Staff
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Sheinbaum mañanera Mar. 16, 2026
Sheinbaum told reporters that she will submit her "plan B" electoral reform proposal to Congress on Tuesday, one day later than originally planned. (Gabriel Monroy/Presidencia)

Sheinbaum’s mañanera in 60 seconds

  • 🗳️ Plan B electoral reform proposal heads to Congress Tuesday: Sheinbaum will submit her scaled-back proposal — focused on cutting budgets for state legislatures, the Senate and some municipal governments — on Tuesday, with allied PT and PVEM parties now on board after voting down her original constitutional reform.
  • 💸 Fighting political privileges: The president highlighted stark budget inequalities between state legislatures — some receive more than 30 million pesos per deputy vs. 5 million in others — and said savings from the reform would fund infrastructure and public needs rather than politician salaries of up to 500,000 pesos a month.
  • 🇲🇽🇺🇸 Sheinbaum strikes a diplomatic tone on U.S. relations: Despite Trump sharing a post on Truth Social accusing her administration of being a “narco-government,” Sheinbaum said Mexico always seeks a good relationship with the US — and expressed optimism as formal USMCA review talks kicked off Monday.

Why today’s mañanera matters  

It’s another big week for the Mexican government as formal USMCA talks with the Trump administration commence Monday and President Claudia Sheinbaum’s “plan B” electoral reform proposal will be submitted to Congress on Tuesday.

At her Monday morning press conference, Sheinbaum spoke about her backup electoral initiative five days after her original reform was rejected by Mexico’s lower house of Congress.

She also acknowledged that her government and the Trump administration have their differences, especially when it comes to their preferred approaches to combating cartels on Mexican soil. (Trump would like to send U.S. troops into Mexico, but Sheinbaum is adamant that Mexican forces must combat Mexican cartels.)

Sheinbaum’s Monday mañanera was important as the president effectively set the scene for what is to come this week on two very important issues for her government.

Sheinbaum to send Plan B electoral reform to Congress on Tuesday 

Sheinbaum told reporters that she will submit her “plan B” electoral reform proposal to Congress on Tuesday, one day later than originally planned.

She acknowledged that the ruling Morena party’s allies, the Labor Party (PT) and the Green Party (PVEM), have agreed to back the plan.

Most PT and PVEM deputies voted against Sheinbaum’s original electoral reform proposal, which failed to pass the lower house of Congress as it didn’t meet the supermajority (2/3 support) threshold required for the approval of bills that seek to amend Mexico’s Constitution.

The president noted that her “plan B” proposal — which seeks to modify secondary laws — is largely focused on reducing the resources allocated to state legislatures and the federal Senate, and reducing the number of councilors in some municipal governments.

She reiterated that the savings generated from those initiatives would be used to fund infrastructure projects.

Sheinbaum said last week that her “plan B” proposal would seek to establish a “maximum limit” on resources that can be allocated to state legislatures and that savings will be allocated to “the needs of the people.”

She railed against excessive benefits for politicians, asserting that they allowed some elected officials to earn as much as 500,000 pesos (US $28,000) per month.

On Monday morning, Sheinbaum asserted that her government is continuing to “fight against privileges.”

“It cannot be that the Congress of one state … has [a budget of] 39 million pesos per deputy and another state has 5 million pesos [per deputy],” she said.

Sheinbaum: ‘We always seek a good relationship with the US government’ 

Asked when it would be “feasible” for her to have an in-person meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, Sheinbaum said that her government would seek “the best time” for such an engagement to take place.

The question came after Trump on Friday shared on his Truth Social account video footage of Sheinbaum highlighting that her government has rejected the Trump administration’s offer to send the U.S. Army to Mexico to combat cartels.

U.S. President Trump, without further comment, shared a clip on Friday of Sheinbaum saying that Mexico will continue to reject the deployment of the U.S. military in Mexico to combat cartels.
U.S. President Trump, without further comment, shared a clip on Friday of Sheinbaum saying that Mexico will continue to reject the deployment of the U.S. military in Mexico to combat cartels. (Truth Social)

Trump also shared on Truth Social a post by an X (formerly Twitter) user who effectively accused the Sheinbaum administration of being a “narco-government” considering it rejected Trump’s offer of U.S. military assistance. The White House itself asserted last year that “Mexican drug trafficking organizations have an intolerable alliance with the government of Mexico,” while Trump has accused Sheinbaum of being “afraid” of cartels.

On Monday morning, Sheinbaum acknowledged that her government, at times, has disagreements with the Trump administration, especially on issues where Mexico’s sovereignty is at stake.

“But we always seek a good relationship with the United States government, and we have one on security and we have one on trade, ” she said, even though Trump has imposed tariffs on a range of Mexican goods.

Sheinbaum noted that Mexico’s formal USMCA talks with the United States are commencing this Monday ahead of the review of the six-year-old North American free trade pact.

“We hope to reach a very good outcome,” she said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

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