Sheinbaum brands Sinaloa governor’s one-day return to office as “reckless”

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has described the one-day return to office by Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha Moya as “reckless” and “not appropriate,” a decision that has triggered a significant political backlash within his own party. Rocha, 77, briefly resumed his post after a 112-day absence before requesting another indefinite leave of absence, a sequence of events that has drawn scrutiny from the national leadership of the Morena party.

The controversy centres on Rocha’s status while facing a US drug-trafficking indictment issued on 29 April. He is the first sitting Mexican governor to face such charges, which include bribery and shielding a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. Rocha has consistently denied the allegations, characterising them as a politically motivated attack on his administration.

Morena’s national leadership asserted that it had no foreknowledge of Rocha’s decision to return, labelling the move a “personal decision.” In a joint statement, Morena governors claimed that “personal or group political projects have no place” when national interests are at stake. The Senate bloc similarly urged restraint and respect while the domestic investigation unfolds.

President Sheinbaum stated at her daily press conference that she had not spoken to Rocha and did not intend to. On Saturday, she issued a statement that, while not naming Rocha directly, asserted that no personal interest should supersede the interests of the people and the nation. The statement emphasised that public positions are temporary, but responsibility to the state is eternal.

The Sinaloa state congress is expected to appoint an interim governor this week to manage the administrative vacuum. Legal scholars remain divided on whether Rocha’s previous leave of absence stripped him of the constitutional legal protection attached to his office, and whether his current indefinite leave will yield the same result.

The incident occurs against a backdrop of heightened tensions between Washington and Mexico. US President Donald Trump has recently sought to crack down on crime in the Western Hemisphere, labelling the Sinaloa Cartel a “foreign terrorist organisation” and threatening military action. The original indictment also named nine other Mexican officials and businessmen, including a senator, a public security secretary, and the mayor of Culiacan.