Everyday Killings in the nation Fall Thirty-Seven Percent During the Sheinbaum Administration, As per Government Figures

The average figure of everyday homicides each month in the country has fallen by more than a third since Head of State Claudia Sheinbaum took office, as stated by fresh official data. However, security specialists have cautioned that murder numbers could fail to indicate improved countrywide security.

Notable Drop in Daily Numbers

Officials reported an mean of almost 55 killings a day in November as opposed to roughly 87 when the President assumed the leadership in September of last year. This information was delivered by the head of the nation's national public security agency, Marcela Figueroa Franco, during the president’s daily news conference on a recent Tuesday.

“The figures in killings that have been recorded during these months is remarkably notable,” Claudia Sheinbaum said, adding that the previous month the lowest number of murders were registered for any single November in the past 10 years.

Recent Context and Official Plan

Violent organized crime infighting, combined with the administration's heavily militarised campaigns to combat the drug gangs, have made Mexico’s homicide rate rise sharply in recent years. The rate hit a peak of 36,773 homicides in 2020, as reported by the nation's national statistics office.

That resulted in Mexico a homicide rate more than 4x greater than the US. However, homicides have been on the decline, falling to 33,550 the previous year. Claudia Sheinbaum has attributed her national security strategy for an seemingly steeper decline in homicides this year.

At a media briefing in the summer, the Mexican leader declared: “We have a plan, there is monitoring of the plan, and there is specific monitoring municipality by municipality in certain cases. The plan functions. And we have to continue working at it daily.”

The key components of Sheinbaum’s security plan encompass:

• Strengthening Mexico’s domestic security force.
• Improving information gathering and investigation efforts.
• Greater collaboration between various agencies.

Expert Warnings and Statistical Limitations

However, security analysts cautioned that using murder numbers to draw a conclusion of improved security was problematic. This is notably true considering the rise in different criminal activities such as people going missing.

“This would be very good information if this were a drop, but I think we must not just focus on the homicide numbers and think: ‘Alright, great,’” commented Cecilia Farfán-Méndez, an authority on Mexican criminal organizations. “I would be guardedly positive.”

As reported by the public policy research thinktank Mexico Evalúa, killings overall declined by over 20% in the first 10 months of the current year compared with the identical period last year. However, missing persons cases have increased by 15% and in certain regions have increased by as much as 200%.

“Numbers on homicides is no longer valid for assessing the reality of violence,” argued Armando Vargas, a security expert at Mexico Evalúa. “First, we have police and investigators who lack the capacity or the will to accurately identify and classify bodies. Second, organised [criminals] … have the means to hide violent acts through disappearances.”

Vargas noted that using month-to-month means of daily killings was additionally an issue because it may mask days when there were notably elevated numbers of killings.

“Employing the daily average renders surges of violent crime less visible,” he concluded.

Detentions and Seizures as Metrics of Progress

Where the government can cite the success of its security plan is on arrests and confiscations. Almost 40,000 people were arrested between last October and November 2025 for serious offenses, per official data. Over 20,000 firearms were taken and 311 tonnes of narcotics confiscated.

“Donald Trump can't accuse President Sheinbaum of doing nothing, because actually she is accomplishing a lot with these many thousands of detentions, many thousands of confiscations, and all the operational weakening of criminal groups. It’s highly in political terms profitable,” commented Vargas.

Persistent Unrest and Societal Anger

Yet despite these measures, Mexico is still grappling with high bloodshed, with a number of regions in the midst of cartel-fueled violence. Last month there was a high-profile murder of a popular local official in the state of Michoacan, one of 10 mayors assassinated in the last year.

A short time after, many thousands of young people protested in the capital and across the country to voice their outrage at graft and narco-violence.

“The federal government presents [data] in a manner to create a narrative of security. From a political standpoint it’s very successful, from a social perspective it’s extremely debatable,” Vargas concluded.