De/centralization in Mexico, 1824–2020.

This article presents an analysis of de/centralization in Mexico during the period 1824–2020, building on an original dataset that coded three subdimension of the politico–institutional arrangement, 22 policy areas and 5 subdimension of the fiscal sphere for each year during that time. The country evolved from a decentralized federation at the outset to a relatively centralized one nowadays. The Mexican case also sheds light on the importance of regime type and the ruling elite's ideological orientation to explain de/centralization patterns. Centralization was prevalent during two long authoritarian periods since the last quarter of the XIX century. On the contrary, dynamic decentralization occurred once the authoritarian regime began to erode in the 1980s. The ideological orientation of the ruling elite helped to strengthen those trajectories. When that elite embraced developmental ideas, the move towards centralization was deeper, whereas the opposite took place once national authorities embraced a neoliberal agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]