The U.S. is investigating two more Mexican governors for connections to cartels

MEXICO CITY — The United States is investigating two prominent Mexican governors as the Trump administration expands its campaign against senior Mexican officials suspected of ties to organized crime, multiple sources said.

The move against incumbent government officials threatens to undermine Mexico’s ruling party, which came to power on promises to fight corruption, and further strain already tense relations between the two countries.

For years, the United States has avoided investigating incumbent politicians in its fight against drug trafficking, preferring to target cartel leaders. But with many of Mexico’s most notorious drug traffickers killed, arrested or surrendered, Washington has shifted its attention to prosecuting elected leaders and law enforcement officials suspected of involvement in organized crime.

Sonora Governor Alfonso Durazo and Tamaulipas Governor Américo Villarreal Anaya had their US visas revoked due to criminal investigations, according to sources familiar with the events.

Both are members of Mexico’s ruling Morena party and allies of President Claudia Sheinbaum, who has criticized recent U.S. investigations into Mexican leaders in office as election interference and a violation of her country’s sovereignty.

In April, the Justice Department announced sweeping criminal complaints against leading members of Sheinbaum’s party, including Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya. He, along with nine other current and former officials, was accused of helping the Sinaloa cartel smuggle fentanyl, heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes and help winning elections.

“Is fighting organized crime really a legitimate interest?” Sheinbaum asked this question at a recent political rally. “Or are we witnessing how some segments of the American far right are using our country to position themselves in the 2026 elections? Or do they intend to influence the 2027 elections in our country?”

Durazo, 71, governor of the border state of Sonora, is one of the most high-profile leaders believed to be under investigation to date. He previously served as Mexico’s security minister and helped implement former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s controversial “hugs not bullets” strategy, which emphasized addressing the root causes of crime rather than military confrontations. Sonora is a major drug trafficking transit route to the United States

Durazo’s visa was revoked last year and the United States is investigating him for alleged ties to organized crime, said people familiar with the case who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal matters.

They said Durazo regularly traveled to the United States to receive special treatment for a medical condition under a parole program usually reserved for people who cooperate with law enforcement. Durazo’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

The program, known as Major Public Interest parole, allows noncitizens to testify before a grand jury to mitigate the consequences of actual or pending charges against themselves or others.

“It’s essentially intended to be used as a tool to obtain intelligence and evidence,” Vanda Brown of the Brookings Institution said of the program. Mexican journalist Luis Chaparro had previously reported that Durazo lost his visa and was granted parole due to the US investigation. A typical tourist visa for the US lasts up to 10 years with the possibility of renewal.

The investigation into Villarreal, 68, is linked to a lucrative illegal trade in Mexico known as pirated fuel smuggling. huachicolAccording to people familiar with the case. Sources said Villarreal was also eligible for parole under Significant Public Interest. When he crosses into the United States, he is often accompanied by U.S. officials, a person familiar with his case said.

In a statement, Villarreal denied any wrongdoing and said the allegations were false, biased and without evidence. He said that as a public official, he was always transparent, responsible and abided by the law.

Tamaulipas, on the Texas border, is a hub for fuel smuggling to and from the United States. Several previous governors in Mexico have been investigated for their connections to criminal groups.

The new revelations are expected to increase pressure on Morena, who came to power on the promise of fighting corruption that founder López Obrador says has led to violence. He promised that no one involved in corruption would be spared, even his “comrades in arms.”

Sheinbaum, under the political tutelage of López Obrador, has vowed to continue this fight, and his administration has arrested dozens of local officials accused of wrongdoing, including some with ties to Morena.

Some members of his party pushed Sheinbaum to cut ties with Rocha Moya and other leaders suspected of having ties to organized crime, so that Morena would not be tainted by the allegations.. But Sheinbaum closed ranks, insisting that his government would not comply with the US request to extradite Rocha Moya.

At a rally over the weekend, Sheinbaum dismissed the US investigation into Sinaloa officials as a politically motivated smear campaign against his left-wing government.

U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson criticized his comments. “The fight against the cartels should unite us, not divide us,” Johnson wrote to X. “Every moment spent turning this shared security issue into a political dispute is a missed opportunity to strengthen our partnership and protect the people we serve.”

The increased rhetoric comes at a critical moment for the two countries, which will begin reviewing their free trade agreement with Canada next month.

Over the years, U.S. prosecutors have occasionally filed corruption cases against former Mexican officials, including former security minister Genaro García Luna, who was sentenced to prison in 2024 for accepting bribes from the Sinaloa cartel.

But targeting current elected leaders is a new and more confrontational approach. Members of the Trump administration insist this is necessary because the drug trade depends heavily on the authorities who protect it.

At a meeting in May, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told Sheinbaum that the Trump administration expected Mexico to send Rocha Moya to the United States, sources said.

Sheinbaum said his administration would decide the governor’s fate based on its own assessment of his behavior and warned Mullin that further U.S. accusations against elected leaders would be considered political interference in Mexico’s affairs.

Sheinbaum may choose to sue Rocha Moya, which would signal to his base that he takes corruption seriously but is not willing to bow to U.S. pressure.

But U.S. officials have little faith that Rocha Moya or other politicians will be convicted in Mexican courts.

General Salvador Cienfuegos, in a 2016 photo, once served as Mexico’s defense minister. He was arrested in Los Angeles in 2020 on drug trafficking charges and released to the Mexican government, which later exonerated him.

(Associated Press)

They point to former Defense Secretary Salvador Cienfuegos, who was arrested in Los Angeles in 2020 on US drug trafficking charges and released to Mexico after López Obrador promised to conduct an investigation. Less than two months later, the Mexican government exonerated Cienfuegos. López Obrador later awarded him a top military honor.

Trump has made combating Latin American drug cartels a major foreign policy priority, adopting a maximalist approach that includes declaring gangs terrorist organizations, blowing up alleged drug ships at sea, and authorizing U.S. military strikes on Ecuador and Guatemala.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to attack cartel targets in Mexico, and Sheinbaum said Mexico would consider it an act of war. He condemned recent revelations that CIA officials participated in a raid on a drug laboratory in the northern state of Chihuahua, saying it was a violation of sovereignty.

Cancellation of visas is a quieter but potentially powerful strategy.

Last year, Reuters reported that the United States had revoked the visas of at least 50 politicians and officials in Mexico without fanfare, although few had publicly confirmed that they had lost their visas. One politician who acknowledged losing his was Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar Avila, who denied any connection to organized crime.

Sources speaking to the Times said that the US National Counterterrorism Center took the lead in canceling the visas. Sources said the center, which is part of the Directorate of National Intelligence, is now focusing on cartels designated as terrorist organizations and politicians allegedly collaborating with them, rather than possible threats from the Middle East.

Not all U.S. law enforcement agencies agree on more visa revocations, which could sometimes interfere with criminal investigations, people familiar with the new strategy said.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has repeatedly rejected President Trump’s offer to deploy the US military against cartel targets in Mexico, saying such action would violate Mexican sovereignty.

(Cristopher Rogel Blanquet/Getty Images)

Within the Sheinbaum administration, the accusation against Rocha Moya has caused an anxious guessing game about which Mexican officials might be charged next, people familiar with the matter said.

The targeting of officials comes as Sheinbaum is eyeing 2027 midterm elections in which his party holds a majority in the entire lower house of Mexico’s Congress and 17 state governorships. Political analysts said Trump must carefully choose the candidates he endorses; because touting gubernatorial candidates who could end up being targeted by U.S. law enforcement could throw the election into turmoil and threaten the party’s majority.

Sheinbaum privately called on Morena members to resign if they were involved in corruption. He has publicly taken a defiant stance against US claims that Mexico is “controlled” by the cartels. He responded to Ambassador Johnson on Tuesday, asking him to refrain from commenting on Mexico’s internal affairs.

“Mexico’s affairs belong to Mexicans,” he said.

This article was published in collaboration with Puente News Collaborative, a nonprofit bilingual newsroom covering stories from Mexico and the U.S.-Mexico border. Cecilia Sánchez Vidal from the Times’ Mexico City bureau contributed to this report.