Mexicans behave according to normal economic voting rules: When economic conditions improve they support the president, and when the economy deteriorates they turn against him. Price increases have made people angry, substantially reducing presidential approval rates and eroding confidence in the success of the anti-inflation plan. Self-exonerating arguments do not seem to work in a polity in which the same party has held power since 1929. The article highlights the importance that timing has on the ability of governments to demand public support for economic reforms. Reforms have to be introduced early in the term. Otherwise, negative retrospective evaluations will weigh heavily in people's assessment of the government's ability to implement the economic program successfully. Further, if the government implementing the reforms is not a new one, it will be less able to blame problems on former governments.
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