Since the start of the military-led offensive by the Mexican government in 2006, the drug trafficking organizations have slaughtered their rivals, killed policemen and now increasingly targeted politicians – especially local leaders.
[1] Extreme violence puts politicians at the mercy of the mafias, and thus allowing the cartels to take control of the fundamental government structures and expand their criminal agendas.
[2] Currently, the criminal organizations in Mexico earn a substantial amount of money from extortion and retail drug sales, known in Spanish as "narco-menudeo.
Today, the criminals groups have to deal with three major political parties, posing challenges to the long-relationships the cartels had during the past regime.
[2] As demonstrated with the killing of Rodolfo Torre Cantú in June 2010, a candidate for the PRI who was running for the state government of Tamaulipas, drug lords are interfering with Mexico's election process.