Journalism of Courage
The United States has cancelled the visas of more than 50 Mexican politicians and government officials as part of President Donald Trump’s latest push against drug cartels and their suspected political connections, according to two Mexican officials cited by Reuters.
While a few cases have been reported earlier, Reuters said the visa cancellations are much more widespread than previously known. Three former US ambassadors told the news agency that past administrations had used visa revocations, but not on this scale.
“The Trump administration is finding new ways to exert more pressure on Mexico,” Tony Wayne, who served as US ambassador to Mexico from 2011 to 2015, told Reuters.
A senior Mexican politician told Reuters that more than 50 members of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s ruling Morena party were among those affected, along with several officials from other parties. The names of those whose visas were revoked have not been made public.
So far, only a few politicians have confirmed losing their visas, including Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar Avila, who denied any links to organised crime.
The US State Department told Reuters that “visas, including those held by foreign officials, may be revoked at any time” for “activities that run contrary to America’s national interest.” The department added that Washington “looks forward to continuing to advance our bilateral relationship” with the Sheinbaum government.
Mexico’s presidency and foreign ministry have not commented.
The move has unsettled Mexico’s political class, many of whom travel frequently to the United States. It also broadens Washington’s anti-narcotics campaign to include serving politicians a step that analysts said is usually considered diplomatically sensitive.
The visa cancellations form part of a broader Trump administration effort in Latin America, where visas have also been revoked for several officials in Colombia, Brazil and Costa Rica.
In Mexico, the decision comes as both countries are negotiating on trade and security. President Claudia Sheinbaum has worked with the US on joint anti-cartel operations but has criticised suggestions by Trump officials that the US could take unilateral military action in Mexico, calling such comments a violation of Mexico’s sovereignty.
A source familiar with the visa process told Reuters that the move aligns with the Trump administration’s security strategy, where designating some cartels as terrorist groups means US intelligence can directly affect visa decisions.
Former US ambassador Roberta Jacobson, who served in Mexico from 2016 to 2018, said visa cancellations of this kind were rare during her time. “When I was in government, visa cancellations of politicians usually only happened because of a conviction or an ongoing criminal case,” she told Reuters.
She added that losing a visa could mean the US is investigating someone, but “the likelihood is that you won’t know whether or not the US is investigating potentially for years.”
Another former ambassador, John Feeley, who served in Panama from 2015 to 2018, told Reuters that such large-scale revocations could strain cooperation. “It could spur blowback, where President Sheinbaum sees collaborating with the US as too high of a political cost,” he said.
