Mexico’s most popular state governor is Mauricio Kuri of Querétaro, while the least popular is David Monreal of Zacatecas.

They are among the findings of the latest popularity poll of governors of Mexico conducted by Mitofsky for the newspaper El Economista.

Mitofsky, a Mexico City-based polling company, surveyed 59,548 people across Mexico in March, asking them whether they approved or disapproved of the performance of the governor of the state in which they live.

The poll found that three governors had approval ratings of 60% or higher, two of whom represent the conservative National Action Party (PAN). Those governors are:

• (1) Mauricio Kuri of Querétaro (PAN): Approval rating of 60.7% in March, up 3 points compared to February.
• (2) Mara Lezama of Quintana Roo (Morena): 60.4% (+1.4 points).
• (3) Tere Jiménez of Aguascalientes (PAN): 60% (+2.8 points).

Mitofsky’s February poll also found that Kuri, Lezama and Jimémez were Mexico’s three most popular governors. However, in March, Kuri — who has been in office since October 2021 — supplanted Lezama in the top position. It is the first time a Mitofsky poll has detected that the PAN politician is the country’s most popular governor. Querétaro has lower levels of violent crime than many other states and currently has one of the country’s lowest unemployment rates (1.4% in February).

The three least popular governors all had approval ratings in the 30s last month. They are:

• (30) Javier May of Tabasco (Morena): 8%
• (31) Rocío Nahle of Veracruz (Morena): 4%
• (32) David Monreal of Zacatecas (Morena): 1%

Just over half of respondents approve of their governor 

On average, the approval rating of a state leader in Mexico in March was 50.6%. That percentage — up 0.7 points from February — was the highest average since last September.

Nineteen leaders had approval ratings above the average in March, while 13 had approval ratings below the average.

Twenty-three leaders improved their approval ratings compared to February, while nine went backwards.

Among those whose approval rating improved, Hidalgo Governor Julio Menchaca recorded the largest gain, improving his standing by 4.2 points in the space of a month. He jumped three positions in the rankings to become Mexico’s fourth most popular governor.

Morelos Governor Margarita González recorded the biggest approval rating decline, sliding 2.8 points to 48.1%. She fell one position in the rankings to 21st.

David Monreal remains Mexico’s most unpopular governor, even though homicides declined by a larger percentage in Zacatecas last year than in any other state. Mitofsky attributed the decline in Veracruz Governor Rocío Nahle’s approval rating in March to the recent oil spill off the state’s coast. Nahle, a former federal energy minister, slid three spots in the rankings and is now Mexico’s second most unpopular governor.

All of the governors whose approval rating fell in March represent Morena, the party founded by former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Morena is currently in office in 23 of Mexico’s 32 federal entities, and at a federal level.

With reports from El Economista