Answer to Question 1
Decades of PRI rule had left Mexican institutions ill adapted to the task of providing both limited and effective government.
The existence of divided government where no single party had a majority to exercise control over the executive and legislative branches of government, which brought pluralism to politics but also legislative deadlock that prevented the adoption of necessary economic and social reforms.
The judicial system was slow and inefficient and threatened by endemic corruption.
Federalism was incapable of facilitating cooperation across levels of government on issues such as, revenue sharing and corruption, as several different parties held power at the state level.
The electoral system which needed additional reforms to eliminate electoral corruption.
Answer to Question 2
During the PRI regime, the representation of societal interests was largely
accomplished through the party's corporatist organization.
This meant that few important interest groups existed independently of the state. In the
last two decades, this situation has changed radically. The most obvious change has
come at the level of political parties, where competition has increased between the PRI,
PAN, and PRD. These three parties hotly contest elections, from the presidency on down
to the local level.
Increased competition and pluralism has also helped the development of Mexico's civil
society, allowing new social movements and interest groups to form. New workers'
unions, independent of the state, now compete with older PRIrun unions for
membership and influence. Business has also had to find new political allies and search
for new members. Even migrants, who traditionally had no representation, have started
to organize more formally to make their voice heard.
Finally, a variety of nongovernmental organizations have sprung up around issues that
include everything from the environment to gay marriage to taxes. In short, new groups
have challenged existing political practices, pushing the state to adopt more democratic
practices.
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