Sheinbaum and cabinet pay tribute to Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas: Thursday’s mañanera recapped

• 🕊️ Government pays tribute to Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas after his death: The centerpiece of Thursday’s mañanera was a tribute to Cárdenas, a three-time presidential candidate, co-founder of the Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) and former Mexico City mayor, who died at age 92. Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez said “Mexico is in mourning,” while Minister for Women Laura Itzel Castillo praised his commitment to democracy and social justice. Asked what legacy Cárdenas leaves for “the left” in Mexico, Sheinbaum answered: “Honesty and democracy.”
• 🗳️ Sheinbaum says Taddei “betrayed the trust of the people of Mexico”: Three days after Guadalupe Taddei resigned as president of the National Electoral Institute (INE), the president offered a blunt assessment of her conduct. Taddei stepped down after media reports that companies linked to a businessman close to her received lucrative INE contracts. Sheinbaum noted that Taddei was chosen by the Chamber of Deputies, not by the president, and reiterated her support for a comprehensive audit of the INE by the Federal Auditor’s Office.
• 🖨️ Sheinbaum wants state-owned printer Talleres Gráficos de México to supply “most electoral materials”: The president asserted that “two or three” INE suppliers of items such as ballot papers and ballot boxes are “intermediaries” that don’t produce the materials themselves. Sheinbaum said that next week her government will formally propose turning the government-run printing agency Talleres Gráficos de México into a state-owned company with its own board of directors and “external observation.”

Why today’s mañanera matters  

President Claudia Sheinbaum’s Thursday morning press conference came the day after the death of Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano, a three-time presidential candidate (1988, 1994 and 2000), a co-founder of the leftist Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) and the son of former President of Mexico Lázaro Cárdenas del Río.

Cárdenas, a major figure in Mexican politics who served as a federal senator in the 1970s, governor of Michoacán in the 1980s and mayor of Mexico City in the 1990s, passed away at the age of 92.

Sheinbaum acknowledged his death in a social media post on Wednesday night.

“With deep sorrow, we lament the passing of the engineer Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano, a man of steadfast principles who transformed the political life of our country,” she wrote.

“His role in Mexico’s contemporary history is fundamental. In 1988, he led a peaceful democratic movement that channeled the yearning for change of millions of Mexican women and men. That historic electoral day, in which he should have been recognized as president, marked the beginning of the democratic transformation,” Sheinbaum wrote, alluding to allegations that Cárdenas was denied victory in the 1988 presidential election by electoral fraud.

A tribute to Cárdenas was the centerpiece of today’s mañanera, at which government officials honored his life and political legacy.

Beyond the tribute, Sheinbaum spoke about the allegedly corrupt conduct of Guadalupe Taddei, former president of the National Electoral Institute (INE).

Taddei resigned earlier this week after media outlets reported that companies linked to a businessman with whom she has a close personal relationship had received lucrative INE contracts.

‘Mexico is in mourning,’ says Interior Minister Rosa Rodríguez

Sheinbaum announced at the start of the press conference that the government would pay tribute to “the engineer” Cuauhtémoc Cardenas Solórzano, who obtained a degree in civil engineering from the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

“From here we send an affectionate hug to Lázaro, Cuauhtémoc and Camila, his children, and to all the people who were close to the engineer,” she said.

#LoÚltimo 🕊️La presidenta Claudia Sheinbaum anunció que la mañanera de este jueves estará dedicada a rendir homenaje a Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas, tras darse a conocer su fallecimiento a los 92 años.

“Hasta siempre, Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas”, expresó la mandataria. https://t.co/DNTvdCAtcq

— xevt – xhvt (@xevtfm) October 29, 2026

Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez was the first official to speak at length about Cardenas.

“The journey of Cuauhtémoc Cardenas Solórzano has historical significance for Mexico and for the people of the Americas and the world,” she began.

Rodríguez said that his political “struggle” greatly influenced “the Mexico of today.”

Cárdenas was a man who “shaped the transition to democratic life” in Mexico and he “left a mark on the transformation of our country,” she said.

“His example demonstrates that convictions take on meaning when they are placed at the service of the people,” Rodríguez said.

At the end of her address, the interior minister said that “Mexico is in mourning,” but added that Cárdenas’ “teachings, his love of the homeland, his principles and his ideals will remain with us.”

“Long live the great democrat of Mexico, Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Solórzano,” Rodríguez said.

Minister for Women Laura Itzel Castillo called Cárdenas “a great Mexican” and a “dear friend” of her family.

She said his life was “marked by the strength of his convictions and his commitment to democracy, social justice and the defense of national sovereignty.”

“His career is part of the contemporary history of Mexico. His struggle opened paths for democratic participation and he contributed to the transformation of political life in our country,” Castillo said.

After a video tribute to Cárdenas was played, a reporter asked Sheinbaum about the legacy he leaves for “the left” in Mexico and Latin America.

“Honesty and democracy,” she responded.

“Democracy that comes from below, not democracy of the elites,” Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum: ‘I believe that Guadalupe Taddei betrayed the trust of the people of Mexico’

Three days after Guadalupe Taddei resigned as president of the INE, Sheinbaum offered a blunt assessment of Taddei’s conduct.

“I believe that Guadalupe Taddei betrayed the trust of the people of Mexico,” she said. “That’s the way it has to be said.”

Sheinbaum reiterated that Taddei was elected by the Chamber of Deputies, rather than by the president. She also reiterated her support for a comprehensive audit of the INE by the Federal Auditor’s Office.

In 2023, during the presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Taddi was elected via sortition — also known as selection by lottery — as none of the candidates for president of the INE had the support of the required two-thirds of lawmakers in the lower house of Congress. At the time of her election, questions were raised about her family links to both the government and Morena.

National Electoral Institute president resigns as corruption questions mount

Sheinbaum says state-owned company should supply ‘most electoral materials’

Electoral materials suppliers linked to José Alfredo Hernández Casillas — the businessman who is reportedly a close friend of Taddei — received lucrative INE contracts.

Sheinbaum asserted that “two or three” companies that received contracts to supply materials such as ballot papers and ballot boxes to the INE didn’t actually produce the materials themselves but rather acted as “intermediaries.”

She told reporters that “most electoral materials” should in fact be made by Talleres Gráficos de México, a government-run printing agency.

To that end, Sheinbaum said that next week her government will formally propose turning Talleres Gráficos de México into a state-owned company with its own board of directors and “external observation.”