Heightened political pressure and illness pushed Gordillo out from public life for about a year, though she did hold on to her post as the PRI general secretary.

On 19 September and as a result of the dispute with Madrazo, Gordillo resigned her general secretary position in the PRI but decided to continue her affiliation with the party.

Gordillo holds significant powers from the national public schools system dominated by her union in which teaching positions could be sold or inherited.

[12] Gordillo allegedly set up a political party that followed principles of a patronage system in 2005 that became notorious for obtaining privileges and appointments in return of its support in key elections.

It was widely speculated that she helped Felipe Calderón obtain his narrow victory for the presidency in 2006 as part of a deal that allowed her to place individuals in the government who held allegiances to her.

[13] Gordillo was arrested on corruption charges by the Mexican authorities on 26 February 2013 after her private jet in which she had travelled from California landed at the Toluca airport near the capital.

She was arrested for allegedly embezzling 2 billion pesos (US$156,816,000 or €119,242,600) from the Mexican National Educational Workers Union (SNTE), according to Attorney General Jesús Murillo Karam.

[2][4] To head her criminal defense, Gordillo hired prominent penal lawyer Marco Antonio del Toro Carazo who is also defending labor leader Napoleón Gómez Urrutia.