The screwworm parasite can be fatal for livestock and cause serious infections in humans. (Animalia)
Mexico’s Health Ministry officially confirmed six cases of parasitic infestation caused by screwworm in southern Mexico. Five patients have been treated and released, while one remains hospitalized.
Five of the cases — which include myiasis (embedded larvae) in the heads of four patients — are located in the state of Chiapas; the sixth is in Campeche.
¿Has escuchado hablar de la miasis? 🤔
Es una enfermedad causada por el #GusanoBarrenador, que puede afectar al ganado y al ser humano. 🐛
Screwworm larvae can enter animals and humans through open wounds and feed on living tissue. The disease can be fatal for livestock, and while cases in humans are rare, they can be serious if left untreated.
Shortly after, similar symptoms were identified in a 50-year-old Chiapas man after he had been bitten by a dog.
Just over a week ago, three more Chiapas residents were diagnosed with parasitic infections, including a 74-year-old man who remains hospitalized. At the same time, an 86-year-old Campeche resident was treated for screwworm infestation.
El Universal newspaper reported a possible seventh case of parasitic infection in Chiapas that had not been registered by the Health Ministry.
Though the risk of human infection is low, myiasis is more likely in rural areas where people might come into contact with infected animals. Myiasis is not spread from human to human.
Public health officials urge rural residents to maintain personal and animal hygiene, avoid contact with animals with open wounds or signs of infection. If you suffer a wound or a cut, officials recommend treating it immediately to prevent the Cochliomyia hominivorax, or screwworm, fly from laying its eggs.
President Claudia Sheinbaum said Tuesday that the U.S. and Mexico are continuing their joint efforts to eradicate screwworm infestations, an agreement that was announced in April.
A day earlier, Sheinbaum said Mexico’s Agriculture Minister Julio Berdegué is engaged in “permanent talks” with United States officials in hopes of convincing the U.S. to reopen its southern border to Mexican livestock.
The screwworm infestation and the suspension of imports have been a disaster for Mexico’s livestock industry. Exports from January through April this year are down 60% compared to the same period last year, La Jornada reported.
While the border was open during the first quarter of the year, Mexico exported 202,000 head of cattle, whereas Mexico had shipped 504,000 head across the border during Q1 2024.
Latin Grammy winners Carín León (pictured) and Grupo Frontera both recently took the "stage" at NPR headquarters in Washington, D.C. (NPR)
Regional Mexican music’s global resurgence took center stage when stars Carín León and Grupo Frontera delivered standout performances on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series in recent weeks, highlighting the genre’s emotional depth and cross-cultural appeal.
León, backed by a 16-piece band, performed May 16 in the NPR Music office in Washington, D.C. — severely testing the cramped spaces of the celebrated venue. A video of the performance on YouTube has garnered 3.8 million views in under two weeks.
Carín León: Tiny Desk Concert
Grupo Frontera, a Texas-formed band deeply rooted in Mexican genres and cumbia, performed there April 24. A video of that session has over 2 million views.
The singer-songwriter León — who hails from Hermosillo, Sonora — won for best contemporary Mexican music album (“Boca Chueca, Vol. 1”).
Grupo Frontera — whose members have roots tracing back to Mexican states like Tamaulipas and Nuevo León — won for best regional Mexican song (“El Amor de Su Vida”) and best norteño album (“El Comienzo”).
Grupo Frontera: Tiny Desk Concert
Like all Tiny Desk concerts, both performances took place behind a real working desk — originally that of now-retired NPR music host Bob Boilen — surrounded by shelves cluttered with books, memorabilia and office supplies.
The intimate, authentic series has become a viral gateway for artists like T-Pain and Dua Lipa, with 138 million views for Lipa’s 2020 session — although hers was recorded in a London studio as a “home concert,” a Tiny Desk format adopted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’re in a moment where you can be who you are, without U.S. labels dictating terms,” said NPR producer Anamaría Sayre, who champions Latin music.
Blending norteño, banda and pop influences, León played a 15-minute set that included “Ese Vato No Te Queda,” “Lado Frágil” and the then-unreleased ballad “Por La Suave” from his new album, Palabra De To’s (Seca).
“Thank you for having us here. Que viva la música mexicana,” León told the audience, which usually totals about 20 to 30 NPR staffers and guests. “Representing Mexico with our sound is a pride beyond words.”
Mexican singer-songwriter Natalia Lafourcade gave one of Tiny Desk’s all-time most-watched concerts in 2017. (Sony Music)
The performance featured charchetas (brass alto horns that are staples in Mexican music) and a tololoche (a traditional Mexican four-stringed instrument, similar to a small upright bass), plus other instruments emblematic of regional Mexican music’s rich sound.
Three weeks earlier, Grupo Frontera’s seven musicians (two more than usual), one lead singer and three specially added female backup singers brought the band’s “cumbia norteña” fusion to the space.
Playing a month after joining Shakira on-stage in Mexico City, Grupo Frontera performed a 20-minute set that included hits like “Un x100to” and “El Amor de Su Vida” reworked with R&B and reggae twists.
“We rehearsed for days to perfect this acoustic set,” the band noted. Many Tiny Desk invitees opt to play acoustically to match the setting. “The intimate atmosphere made us nervous, but it was truly beautiful.”
Teachers and allies marched through the capital of Oaxaca on Friday, in support of the striking CNTE teachers. (Carolina Jiménez/Cuartoscuro)
The National Coordinator of Education Workers (CNTE), one of Mexico’s most powerful teachers’ unions, has maintained a series of protests in Mexico City since May 15 as part of a national strike to demand changes in working and educational conditions.
Demonstrations have included toll booth takeovers, embassy protests, sit-ins at the capital’s Zócalo, blockades at Mexico City International Airport (AICM) and main roads such as Chapultepec, Cuauhtémoc, Paseo de la Reforma and Blvd. Adolfo López Mateos, significantly affecting traffic and daily life in the capital.
Travelers faced delays and long lines at Mexico City International Airport on May 23, as CNTE teachers’ protests blocked access and disrupted flights. (Rogelio Morales/Cuartoscuro)
The CNTE protests have also resulted in school closures, affecting some 1.2 million children who are unable to attend classes. The Education Ministry (SEP) reported that most of the affected schools are located in the southern states of Oaxaca, Chiapas, and Guerrero.
What are the teachers’ demands?
The teacher’s main demand is the repeal of the 2007 ISSSTE Law, approved during President Felipe Calderón’s term, which President Claudia Sheinbaum promised to repeal during her campaign.
CNTE members say the law affects their pension system by requiring pensions to be based on individual savings funds. The amount is calculated using the current UMA (Unit of Measurement and Update), instead of the minimum wage, as the teachers demand.
CNTE members also accuse the government of benefiting private pension fund administrators (Afores), pointing out that their operation is backed by international commitments such as the USMCA. Teachers say the current model indebts the state and chains workers’ resources to financial markets and large corporations.
Protesters have camped out in the Mexico City Zócalo for more than a week, seeking to pressure the government to improve salaries and retirement benefits for teachers. (Victoria Valtierra/Cuartoscuro)
Teachers are additionally advocating for a retirement system based on years of service, not age. They demand that women be able to retire after 28 years of service and men after 30 years, as was the case before the 2007 ISSSTE Law. The current law sets the minimum retirement age at 56 for women and 58 for men, regardless of years worked, which CNTE considers unfair.
They also demand that salaries be doubled for teachers across the country.
What has the government offered?
On May 15, Teacher’s Day, Claudia Sheinbaum announced an initial 9% salary increase retroactive to January, with an additional 1% increase starting in September, as well as an extra week of leave for teaching staff.
Sheinbaum also issued a decree forgiving debts, reducing loan amounts and freezing interest on Fovissste (publicly subsidized) loans, benefiting over 24,000 teachers. The move will cost the government more than 19 billion pesos (US $989 million).
Sheimbaum also issued a decree freezing the minimum retirement age, but did not modify the age criteria as requested by teachers.
What is the status of the negotiations?
CNTE has rejected Sheinbaum’s proposals, saying they do not address the teachers’ core demands.
En 2024, Sheinbaum prometió derogar la reforma de pensiones del 97 y 2007, “con ayuda” de la aplanadora morenista.
Hoy, ya como presidenta, se retracta. Mintió. Engañó a la CNTE. Y como en sexenios pasados… nadie los detiene.
“This does not address the demand for the repeal and creation of a new ISSSTE Law, which would return us to a solidarity-based pension system,” CNTE members told newspaper La Jornada. “As for more leave time, we’ve never demanded that. No, what we’re asking for is the repeal of these two central reforms that undermine workers’ rights.”
So far, CNTE representatives have met with high-ranking Mexican officials but not with Sheinbaum herself. She has refused to meet with them, claiming they broke off dialogue by attacking a cameraman on May 21, as they blocked the entrance to her morning news conference.
The teachers have threatened to continue protesting through June 1, the day of Mexico’s first judicial election, unless they receive a “concrete response” from the government.
“Of course, we don’t want to wait until June 1st. If they gave us a concrete answer today or tomorrow, then we wouldn’t be crazy enough to continue suffering what we’re going through,” said Pedro Hernández, of Section 9 of the CNTE, at a press conference outside the National Electoral Institute.
Kia Mexico production remains a cornerstone of the company’s North American strategy.(Secretaría de Economía de Nuevo León/X)
South Korean automaker Kia says it will not be deterred by U.S. import tariffs and will maintain its production operations in Mexico.
Horacio Chávez, managing director of Kia México, said the company plans to produce 280,000 of its popular K3 and K4 models at its plant in the state of Nuevo León, while also investing in its training facility.
— Abogados Del Consumidor (@consumidoraboga) May 27, 2025
The K4, which is exported from Mexico to 66 countries, including Canada and the U.S., is produced exclusively at Kia’s plant in Pesquería, Nuevo León.. The company invested US $150 million in the plant last year to expand K4 production, which came on the market in March 2024.
“The K4 will comprise 60% of this year’s production,” Chávez said, adding that the company plans to broaden K4 exports but will continue to export to the U.S.
“Despite the trade tensions caused by the U.S. president, Kia will maintain its operations in Mexico,” Chávez told Milenio newspaper. “We recognize that [the Mexican government] is doing everything it can and, it seems to me, is doing it well.”
Chávez acknowledged that it is difficult to project how long the trade uncertainty will last. He admitted that “this could generate certain circumstances, but for the moment there are no changes [in our plans].
According to El Universal newspaper, Kia is paying part of the tariff levied on U.S. imports, but declined to say how much. Chávez said the automaker is analyzing how to increase North American content in its vehicles to reduce tariff impact.
To illustrate this commitment, Chávez said Kia will be expanding its training center “to increase its capacity by 400%.” Kia and its dealers will also spend US $15 million this year to remodel the company’s 100 Mexican dealerships.
Kia also has production facilities in Europe and India, so adjustments could be made if necessary. The North American market remains an important market for Kia, however, and since arriving in Mexico in 2016, the country has been a key part of its global strategy.
Cook, two step or perhaps spot the gold stars of tomorrow in Los Cabos in June. (Acre)
June ushers in the start of fishing tournament season in Los Cabos, with the Triple Crown of Fishing sponsored by watersports apparel giant Pelagic being the first major event in 2025, where anglers compete to catch the biggest billfish and other sought-after species. However, that’s one of only several events in which fishing, or Los Cabos’ other major sport, golf, is featured.
Acre is one of the standouts of San José del Cabo’s acclaimed farm-to-table restaurant scene and received a coveted Green Star from the Michelin Guide for its superb, sustainable cuisine. Cooking classes here thus offer plenty of knowledge — participants learn how to make ceviche, cheese enmoladas, and a dessert dish from scratch — but are only part of the experience. Guests also receive a welcome cocktail and a tour of the farm.
Date: Weekdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Location: Acre Resort, C. Rincón de las Ánimas S/N, Ánimas Bajas
Here's To Life, performed live by Daline Jones, Diego Ramírez, Ivan Lee, Román Talavera
There is only one person in Los Cabos for whom the term chanteuse leaps to mind. That would be Daline Jones, the esteemed jazz vocalist who, along with long-time musical partner pianist Diego Ramirez, has been headlining local bars and clubs for two decades. The best place to see them live is at Jazz on the Rocks at Sunset Point, where they appear every Wednesday during dinner hours.
Date: June 4, 11, 18, 25
Location: Jazz on the Rocks at Sunset Point, Carretera Transpeninsular Km. 6.5, Tourist Corridor
Cost: Restaurant purchases expected, with a US $12 cover to be seated in the picturesque Terrace Area
Art Walk is the most important recurring weekly cultural to-do in Los Cabos, and acclaimed local artist Ivan Guaderrama’s interactive gallery space is among the best places to experience this beloved, long-running event. Art Walk is seasonal, beginning each year in November and ending the following June, meaning the final four weekly Art Walks of the 2024–2025 season happen on Thursdays this month. Times for interactive exhibitions at Guaderrama’s gallery are 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Yes, country music in Cabo is a thing, and has been for decades. The 2025 Big Cabo Fest is proof, with Texas-style country music talent headlining four days of vacation fun at the RIU Palace Baja California. In addition to scheduled activities like the fishing rodeo, there’ll be live performances from singer-songwriters Roger Creager, Kevin Fowler, Jake Worthington, Django Walker, Matt Skinner, Wynn Williams, and more.
Dates: June 8 to 12
Location: Hotel RIU Palace Baja California, El Médano, Cabo San Lucas
Cost: Accommodation packages started at US $1,139 but are already sold out
I love the bar at Viceroy Los Cabos, which I helped populate as an extra in the 2022 Alejandro Iñárritu film “Bardo, falsa crónica de unas cuantas verdades.” The beautifully designed outdoor watering hole remains spectacular under any circumstances, cinematic or otherwise. However, the cocktails will reach new heights when bartender Kevin Tocino from Aruba Day Drink Bar in Tijuana, ranked among The World’s 50 Best Bars, visits for a stint behind the bar in June.
Dates: June 12 to 15
Location: Viceroy Los Cabos, Zona Hotelera, San José del Cabo
Cost: Open to guests of the resort, rates start at US $500 per night
The Future Champions Golf (FCG) series of Callaway-sponsored junior tournaments aims to produce the next generation of superstars. Four events will be held in Mexico this year, all providing qualifying spots to the 2025 World Junior Golf Championship. Last year, over 700 players from 36 countries competed in the series. Boys and girls ages 7 to 18 will play in age divisions on the Jack Nicklaus-designed course at Palmilla Golf Club, hoping to advance.
Dates: June 13 to 15
Location: Palmilla Golf Club, Carretera Transpeninsular Km 27.5, Tourist Corridor
More country music is on tap in June courtesy of live performances from Texas country music artist Casey Donahew and Friends. The headliner will perform hits like He Ain’t a Cowboy and Drove Me to the Whiskey in a beachfront setting at a luxury resort on the Pacific Coast of Cabo San Lucas, with surprise guests (aka the “friends”) also performing during the five-day event.
Dates: June 15 to 19
Location: Pueblo Bonito Pacifica Resort & Spa, Cabo San Lucas
This event starts the fishing season in style with a non-traditional points system for billfish. Because all billfish are caught and released, those catches captured on video are assigned points relative to their value: black and blue marlin 300 points, striped marlin 100, and sailfish and spearfish 50. The other categories — tuna, dorado, and wahoo — are judged more traditionally. The biggest fish caught earn the biggest payouts.
Dates: June 19 to 22
Location: Boats leave from the Cabo San Lucas Marina
Cost: US $4,000 per team (6 anglers maximum); 93,000 all-in to include daily jackpots
Single-day fishing and golf tournaments, plus nightly live performances, are why participants return to Los Cabos yearly. However, raising money for youth charities is the goal (over 60 million has been raised and donated since 1996). Michael Franti & Spearhead, Little Big Town, and OneRepublic are all scheduled to perform for the 2025 edition of the long-running event.
Gin Condesa-based signature cocktails inspired by the themes of shamanism and tarot are in the cards when the artisanal Mexico City gin brand “takes over” Baja Beach by Mako at Solaz Resort Los Cabos. Music will be provided courtesy of a guest DJ, and a special menu will be available. Reservations are required for resort guests.
Date: June 27
Location: Solaz Resort Los Cabos, Carretera Transpeninsular Km 18.5, Tourist Corridor
Cost: Rates at the resort typically begin at around US $500 per night
Chris Sands is the Cabo San Lucas local expert for the USA Today travel website 10 Best, writer of Fodor’s Los Cabos travel guidebook and a contributor to numerous websites and publications, including Tasting Table, Marriott Bonvoy Traveler, Forbes Travel Guide, Porthole Cruise, Cabo Living and Mexico News Daily. His specialty is travel-related content and lifestyle features focused on food, wine and golf.
The young musicians, who aspire to someday perform in Texas, disappeared after a Sunday night gig. (Grupo Fugitivo/Facebook)
The five members of the Reynosa-based norteña band Grupo Fugitivo have been reported as missing after their families lost contact with them on Sunday.
The young men reportedly disappeared after a performance in the Riberas de Rancho Grande neighborhood of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, on Sunday night.
Relatives of the musicians subsequently reported their disappearance to the Specialized Missing Persons Unit in the northern border city, according to media reports.
There is scant information about what happened to the members of Grupo Fugitivo, which, according to the band’s Facebook page, is available to play at events in Reynosa and surrounding areas.
The newspaper La Jornada reported that the men disappeared along with their SUV, instruments and audio equipment.
The Tamaulipas Attorney General’s Office issued boletines de busqeuda, or search bulletins, for the five men.
They are:
Francisco Xavier Vásquez Osorio, 20.
Nemesio Antonio Durán Rodríguez, 40.
Livan Edyberto Solís de la Rosa, 27.
Víctor Manuel Garza Cervantes, 21.
José Francisco Morales Martínez, 23.
Each of the search bulletins states that the missing person “may be a victim of a crime” given that his whereabouts is unknown.
The group “Desaparecidos in Tamaulipas Colectivo Amor” (Missing in Tamaulipas Love Collective) posted a photo to Facebook that showed Grupo Fugitivo’s black SUV towing an enclosed trailer, which the band presumably used to transport instruments and audio equipment.
The Facebook post also included photos of the missing men and a plea for any information about their disappearance to be shared in a private message.
“See you in a while McAllen Texas. Pure Fugitive, crossing borders. (Don’t believe it, it’s just a photo on the Mexican side, but we hope to one day expand into the United States),” said the caption to the post
The band’s Facebook page has a link to another Instagram page with the handle @grupo_fugitivooffical. The account has zero posts, just 42 followers and was only created this month, according to Instagram.
A social media story posted to that account on Monday night states “Por favor ayúdanos” (Please help us).
A second story states: “Ru[m]bo a Nuevo León por favor” (On the way to Nuevo León please).
Mexico News Daily could not verify that the account is actually controlled by Grupo Fugitivo, and it is possible, or even probable, that someone outside the band created it after news of the disappearance of the five year young men broke.
Tamaulipas is known as a violent state, although less than 1% of Mexico’s total homicides in the first four months of the year occurred in the northern border state. The state is home to the notorious Gulf Cartel.
Hurricane season officially began in Mexico's Pacific Ocean on May 15. (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center)
It’s finally here! The first shower arrived in Mexico City on May 8, 2025, marking the unofficial start of the city’s long-awaited rainy season. After a very dry spring this year, temperatures are finally falling with the first downpours.
Nothing brings capitalinos more joy than a cloudy CDMX. Yet, however excited we get when the rain comes — imagine anything worse than a dry season with pretty bad air quality? — we know that the rainy season in Mexico alsobrings hurricanes to folks in coastal areas.
Acapulco’s iconic hotel strip was completely devastated by the unexpected strength of Hurricane Otis in 2023. (ProtoplasmaKid/Wikimedia Commons)
Due to the global climate crisis, when hurricanes arrive nowadays, they tend to be wilder, more dangerous and more unpredictable. A disturbing example of this occurred in 2023 in Acapulco with Hurricane Otis, which grew in strength so quickly, it took Mexican officials by surprise and caused over 50 deaths and overwhelming damage to the resort community.
Though it is practically impossible to know how many hurricanes there will actually be, or how hazardous they might become, authorities have outlined best practices and contingency guidelines to go through a hurricane safely.
If you’re living in Mexico in an area prone to hurricanes, read on to learn more about them and how to stay safe if you run into the path of one.
When does Mexico’s hurricane season start?
Hurricane season in Mexico officially started in the Pacific Ocean on May 15. The Atlantic hurricane season in Mexico will begin on June 1. Both end on Nov. 30. This period also coincides with the rainy season throughout much of the country.
According to the National Meteorological Service (SMN), hurricanes are tropical cyclones that have gained great strength. Heavy rain and winds come with these natural phenomena. “When a storm’s maximum sustained winds reach 74 mph,” says the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), “it is called a hurricane.”
The official names to be given to storms that form during the 2025 Pacific hurricane season, which started May 15. (Conagua)
Hurricanes are typically classified into five categories in theSaffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, depending on wind strength and the danger they pose to the population:
Category 1: 74–95 mph
Category 2: 96–110 mph
Category 3: 111–130 mph
Category 4: 131–155 mph
Category 5: Winds greater than 155 mph
This year, the SMN is predicting up to 37 cyclones in the Atlantic and Pacific combined, the first of which will be named Andrea.
Hurricanes more aggressive and unpredictable
Hurricane Otis was a grim reminder that the global climate crisis is not a hoax. Rising ocean temperatures, a consequence of the planet’s warming, has resulted in cyclones, hurricanes and related events becoming even more intense and hard to predict.
“This change is likely related to warming ocean temperatures and more moisture in the air,” said a recent NASA report, “both of which fuel hurricanes.”
After the disastrous effect Hurricane Otis had on the coast of Guerrero in 2023, particularly in Acapulco, being wary of hurricane season in Mexico is a must. How to be safe, then?
How to stay safe during hurricane season
The northwestern states in Mexico, such as Sinaloa and the southern part of the Baja California Peninsula, are particularly vulnerable to the Pacific hurricane season in Mexico. In the Atlantic, the Yucatán Peninsula is frequently hit, too, along with the Caribbean coast. If you’re living around these areas, the first thing to do is stay up-to-date with the news through official media.
The Water Ministry (@Conagua_clima on the social media platform X and Conagua Comisión Nacional del Agua-SMNmx on Facebook) shares information on its social media accounts, particularly on X, and posts updates about each storm’s trajectory and behavior.
If official sources warn of danger, monitor the developing situation from inside, using only official information sources to make what could be a life-or-death decision. (Carlos Alberto Carbajal/Cuartoscuro)
Monitoring local news is key to knowing how each weather phenomenon is developing and what to do in case of an emergency. In case of a natural disaster, these outlets also typically publish where to get help or seek shelter. Local and state governments used to dealing with tropical storms and hurricanes year after year — such as in the Yucatán Peninsula — usually post important resident information on social media in the days before a dangerous storm makes landfall. Look also on social media for your state’s Civil Protection agency, which may have useful information posted.
If your local or state government advises not to go out, or in an extreme case, to evacuate, by all means, listen to official instructions. Also, please, avoid misinformation at all costs: always try to verify your sources with reliable outlets. WhatsApp chains, unofficial individuals’ social media accounts or random Facebook posts are not reliable enough, and could even harbor a scam.
The following advice is always advisable, especially if you live in a risky area:
Stay indoors, even during brief periods of calm
Avoid flooded or affected areas
Follow government guidelines and keep up to date with official information
And, of course, if necessary, be prepared for any aftermath
Stay safe, folks!
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.
The harsh reality for the Train Maya is that it's not attracting enough foreign passengers to break even and probably never will, according to its general director. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)
The Maya Train has only been fully operational for five months and already questions about its profitability have been raised. The latest doubts come not from the project’s innumerable critics, but from the director of the railway.
Gen. Óscar David Lozano — the general director of the Maya Train — raised eyebrows earlier this month when he admitted to the Mexican Association of Railroads (AMF) that the Maya Train will not turn a profit unless cargo trains are added to the project.
Óscar Lozano Águila, director general of the Maya Train, shown here with Tourism Minister Josefina Rodríguez Zamora, has made clear his belief that no train enterprise in the world can make a profit without offering freight service. (Daniel Augusto/ Cuartoscuro)
In fact, a day earlier, Lozano had confirmed that the Maya Train operated at a significant loss in 2024. The state-owned railway was US $133 million in the red, bringing in only 275 million pesos (US $14 million) from passengers and souvenir sales. That amount represented a mere 9.6% of revenues needed to break even
Billed as a tourism mega-project, the 1,554-km Maya Train railway was built at a cost of roughly 500 billion pesos (US $24.8 billion), nearly four times more than originally estimated.
On Dec. 15, 2024, President Claudia Sheinbaum inaugurated the final two sections of the train that traverses the Yucatán Peninsula, declaring it fully operational and calling it “one of the great legacies” of her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
Perhaps not coincidentally, authorities were already contemplating adapting the railway for cargo transport.
In mid-March, Sheinbaum officially announced plans to link the ports of Progreso, Yucatán, and Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, to stimulate commerce in the region. Trunk lines will connect the ports — both on the Gulf of Mexico side of the peninsula — to the Maya Train tracks.
The government hopes to add 700 kilometers of track to accommodate cargo trains by 2026, citing an initial budget of 38 billion pesos (US $1.98 billion). The goal is for the railway to break even by 2030.
Although ridership has been on the rise — up 181% in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024 — the Maya Train was not proving to be the tourist attraction originally envisioned.
The stated goal of the project was to provide transportation for three million tourists each year, a task made more problematic by the lack of connectivity between the train stations and the tourist attractions it purports to serve.
According to official figures cited by El Financiero, only six of every 100 passengers on the train since operations began in December 2023 were foreign tourists.
Data compiled through May 13 indicated that just over 77,000 passengers were foreigners, nearly half of them from the U.S. This factors out to just 149 international tourists each day, a number which pales in comparison to the estimated 20 million foreign visitors that arrived in Cancún last year.
Furthermore, authorities have found that one-fourth of all foreign tourists riding the Maya Train used it exclusively to travel from Mérida to Cancún, a distance of less than one-fifth of the entire length of the rail system.
Sheinbaum promised a strong National Guard presence in Veracruz after recent political violence and gave an update on negotiations to reopen cattle trade along the U.S. border at her Monday presser. (Saúl López Escorcia/Presidencia)
Thousands of candidates are vying to win almost 900 judgeships, including nine Supreme Court justice positions.
In two states, Veracruz and Durango, citizens will also elect mayors and other municipal officials this Sunday.
At her morning press conference on Monday, President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke about the upcoming elections, as well as violence that has marred the campaign period in Veracruz.
Judicial elections now less than a week away
“Voting is free, direct and secret,” Sheinbaum reminded reporters.
“… And in Mexico he or she who wants to vote votes. And he or she who doesn’t want to vote doesn’t vote, in any election,” she said.
“Voting is free, direct and secret,” Sheinbaum reminded the audience, echoing a common Mexican voting slogan. (File photo)
“There are countries where it is compulsory to vote,” Sheinbaum said, referring to nations such as Australia and Brazil.
“In Mexico it isn’t. There is complete freedom,” she said.
“What we promote is information, education, awareness, in the sense of the importance this election has,” said Sheinbaum, who argues that the renewal of the judiciary is essential to rid it of ills such as corruption and nepotism.
“So, I call on the people on June 1 to go out and vote for the candidates we choose,” she said.
“… It’s very important for citizens to participate and they will participate,” Sheinbaum said, adding that “half” of all people are aware that the judicial elections will take place this Sunday.
“… We have seven days left, including today, to vote in the judicial branch election,” she said.
During her Monday press conference, Sheinbaum called on Mexicans to exercise their right to vote in the upcoming elections. (Saúl López Escorcia/Presidencia)
“Locate your polling place, decide on your preferred candidates in order to exercise your right and get out and vote on June 1,” Sheinbaum said.
As the countdown to election day proceeds, the National Electoral Institute is “investigating complaints that political groups, including ruling party Morena, are trying to sway voters in the upcoming judicial elections,” Reuters reported on Monday.
Security bolstered in Veracruz ahead of elections
A reporter noted that there have been “some episodes of political violence against candidates in Veracruz,” where mayors and other local officials will be elected in all 212 municipalities this Sunday.
Among the incidents of violence was an armed attack last week on the casa de campaña, or “campaign house,” of a candidate for mayor in the municipality of Juan Rodríguez Clara, located in southern Veracruz. A journalist, Avisak Douglas, was wounded in the attack and subsequently succumbed to her injuries.
Sheinbaum said that federal and state authorities have ramped up security in Veracruz, and noted that a special operation will take place in the Gulf coast state on election day.
She said there is a “greater presence of the National Guard in certain places” where there are heightened security risks, as well as “permanent communication” on security issues between authorities.
Sheinbaum said the National Guard would have a greater presence in areas of Veracruz at risk for political violence during the elections. (Margarito Pérez Retana/Cuartoscuro)
Sheinbaum did not identify any criminal group or individuals who may be responsible for recent politically-motivated attacks in Veracruz.
“The Security Cabinet can report [on that],” she said.
“There is a lot of [security] work in Veracruz and the entire country,” Sheinbaum said.
US suspension on livestock imports from Mexico still in place
A reporter noted that 15 days have now passed since the United States suspended imports of livestock from Mexico to prevent the spread of New World screwworm (NWS), cases of which have been detected in animals in southern states including Chiapas and Oaxaca.
Asked for an update on the situation, Sheinbaum said that Agriculture Minister Julio Berdegué is engaged in “permanent talks” with United States officials over the screw worm issue.
She said she hoped that the United States would reopen its southern border to livestock imports from Mexico “as soon as possible.”
Screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite, has been found in Mexican cattle as far north as Veracruz in the past year. (Culture Ministry/Cuartoscuro)
Sterile insect technique, in which large numbers of sterile insects are released into the wild, is being used in Mexico as part of efforts to combat screw worm
At the time, the USDA also said that “the United States and Mexico continue efforts to interdict and eradicate NWS in Mexico and work in good faith.”
“However, despite these efforts and the economic impact on both countries due to this action, there has been unacceptable northward advancement of NWS and additional action must be taken to slow the northern progression of this deadly parasitic fly,” the department said.
García Luna was found guilty of taking bribes from drug traffickers as he served as minister of public security during the Calderón administration (2006-2012). (Rogelio Morales/Cuartoscuro)
A Florida court has ordered Mexico’s ex-security chief Genaro García Luna and his wife, Linda Cristina Pereyra, to pay more than US $2.4 billion to the Mexican government.
The penalty, handed down last week, marks a historic judgment in Mexico’s fight against corruption and cartel influence at the highest levels of power.
Pablo Gómez, seen here at President Sheinbaum’s morning press conference last week, heads Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit that brought the suit against García Luna and his wife. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro.com)
Judge Lisa Walsh of Miami-Dade County ruled that García Luna, already serving a 38-year sentence in the U.S. for taking bribes from the Sinaloa Cartel, must pay US $748 million, while Pereyra is liable for US $1.74 billion.
The combined total is three times what Mexico originally demanded in its suit, according to U.S. news reports.
The civil suit, filed by Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) in 2021, accused the couple of orchestrating a vast network of shell companies and fraudulent contracts to embezzle public funds and launder them through luxury real estate and assets in Florida.
Investigators identified Pereyra as the owner or beneficiary of multiple companies registered in the United States, Barbados and other jurisdictions, with names such as Only Best Properties Corp., Oggi Caffe LLC and GLAC Security.
According to UIF head Pablo Gómez Álvarez, the case centered on 30 contracts signed between 2009 and 2018 by agencies including Mexico’s former federal police force, the Prison Agency (operating under the National Security Commission) and CISEN (Mexico’s principal civilian intelligence agency).
These contracts — which totaled over US $625 million plus an additional 93.8 million pesos (US $4.9 million) — were allegedly inflated or fabricated, with proceeds funneled through offshore accounts in Barbados and invested in high-end properties and vintage cars.
At the beginning of her Friday mañanera, or press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum celebrated the ruling, stating, “Honor to whom honor is due.”
She also credited the investigation to the previous administration under Andrés Manuel López Obrador and current Secretary of the Interior Rosa Icela Rodríguez.
Gómez highlighted the case as a milestone in the Mexican government’s campaign to recover diverted public funds and combat corruption.
Pereyra, described as the architect behind many of the family’s business ventures, operated companies and restaurants in Mexico and the U.S., allegedly using them as fronts to launder illicit funds.
Investigations revealed a network of at least 44 companies registered in jurisdictions including the U.S. and Barbados, designed to obscure the origin and movement of public money.
The UIF confirmed the 2023 recovery of over US $1.9 million in cash and a property valued at $555,800, with additional assets seized from related companies. At the time, López Obrador described it as an “advance payment” on what Mexico was seeking to reclaim from García Luna.
Once celebrated as the architect of Mexico’s war on drugs under President Felipe Calderón, García Luna was convicted in 2023 of accepting millions in bribes to protect the Sinaloa Cartel, facilitating the trafficking of over a million kilograms of cocaine into the United States.
Prosecutors described how he received cash in suitcases, briefcases and duffel bags, with cartel members testifying to direct payoffs.
His wife, Pereyra, was the only defense witness at his criminal trial, offering personal testimony in his support.
Last week, García Luna’s defense team was granted a 60-day extension for filing an appeal of his 38-year sentence, citing barriers that are preventing communication with their client, who remains incarcerated at USP Lee, or U.S. Penitentiary, Lee — a high-security federal prison for male inmates in Lee County, Virginia.
Approved on Friday, the extension sets a new deadline of Sept. 19 for the necessary paperwork to be filed. This marks the second time the Second Circuit Court of Appeals has given García Luna’s team an extension.
