Mexico: Changing of the Guard

by George W. Grayson

Vicente Fox Quesada of the center-right National Action party (PAN) became president of Mexico on December 1, 2000, with ambitious goals for domestic and foreign policy. Yet the populist leader, formerly a business executive at Coca-Cola, faced opposition both within his party and from outside, with an array of potent foes trying to stymie his plans. This Headline Series looks at the initiatives Fox tackled in his first year in office, including defusing the Chiapas conflict, economic reform and relations with the United States, European countries and other nations in the Western Hemisphere. Evaluating the successes and failures of his first year, Grayson provides an analysis and forecast of Fox's ability to transform Mexico into a truly modern, democratic, humanitarian country.

78 pages, Paperback

First published November 15, 2001

About the author

George Wallace Grayson, Jr. was an FPRI Associate Scholar and the Class of 1938 Professor of Government at the College of William & Mary. He was a senior associate at the Center for Strategic & International Studies, a board member of the Center for Immigration Studies, and a lifetime member of the NAACP. Grayson lectured regularly at the U.S. Department of State, at the National Defense University, and at universities throughout the United States and Mexico.