During a tour of Puebla, Mexico's President cited these changes as reversing the historical backwardness faced by the popular sectors.

This article by Emir Olivares originally appeared in the January 22, 2026 edition of La Jornada, Mexico’s premier left wing daily newspaper.

Acatzingo, Puebla. Continuing her tour of the state, Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum asserted that through wage policies and social programs, decades of neglect of the people, which prevailed during neoliberal governments, have been broken. She emphasized that since President Andrés Manuel López Obrador took office, priority has been given to the working class because the poverty they experienced was not due to a lack of desire to work, but rather to a system that abandoned them.

Before thousands of residents of Puebla gathered in this community, the governor emphasized that since the beginning of the Fourth Transformation administrations, the guiding principle has been “the good of all, first and foremost the poor.” Based on this principle, a wage policy was established that has consistently recovered workers’ salaries, noting that in 2018 the minimum wage was 3,000 pesos, and by January 2016 it had reached 9,000 pesos—a 150 percent increase in real terms.

At the same time, the social programs implemented since the previous administration have allowed 13.5 million Mexicans to escape poverty. For this reason, he insisted, the principle of “For the good of all, the poor first” remains in effect, because it has yielded results in helping those who need it most.

Sheinbaum emphasized that social programs have become constitutional rights for the general population because the government operates on the principle that no one should be left behind, and therefore, wealth must be distributed throughout the country. For this reason, people are no longer asked which party they will vote for, as this support is guaranteed by the Constitution.

The President asserted that these policies have disproven the neoliberal myths that wage increases would lead to higher inflation, decreased investment, and a devaluation of the peso: Currently, wage increases have been implemented and inflation is under control; there are high levels of foreign investment and the peso is stronger than ever.

The President also reiterated another principle of her movement: there cannot be a rich government with a poor population. That is why, she said, corruption has not been tolerated, and this has allowed those resources to be channeled into social programs.

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