Manuel Bartlett Díaz (born 23 February 1936) is a Mexican politician, former director of the public energy company CFE, and former Secretary of the Interior. Bartlett was elected to the Senate of the Republic for the 2000–2006 term, where he became known as one of the most staunch defenders of state ownership of electric utilities. On May 27, 2006, in view of the low possibility of

Institutional Revolutionary Party The Institutional Revolutionary Party (, , PRI) is a List of political parties in Mexico, political party in Mexico that was founded in 1929 as the National Revolutionary Party (, PNR), then as the Party of the Mexican Revolution (, PRM) and fin ...

(PRI) candidate Roberto Madrazo winning the Presidency, Bartlett declared that he would vote for

Andrés Manuel López Obrador Andrés Manuel López Obrador (; born 13 November 1953), also known by his initials AMLO, is a Mexican former politician, political scientist, public administrator and writer who served as the 65th president of Mexico from 2018 to 2024. He se ...

, then candidate for the

Party of the Democratic Revolution The Party of the Democratic Revolution (, , PRD) is a state-level social democracy, social democratic political party in Mexico (previously national, until 2024). The PRD originated from the Democratic Current, a political faction formed in 198 ...

, to avoid a right-wing victory. Madrazo and the national leader of the PRI,

Mariano Palacios Mariano Palacios Alcocer (born May 27, 1952, in Santiago de Querétaro) is a Mexican politician affiliated with the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He is a former governor of Querétaro and has presided twice over the PRI. Mariano Pal ...

, both condemned these declarations, and announced the possible expulsion of Bartlett from the party. Bartlett responded by continuing to speak out against both leaders. Since the 2006 election, Bartlett has aligned himself with López Obrador and his Coalition for the Good of All. In 2012 he reentered national politics, being elected a senator for the left-wing Labor Party, in coalition with López Obrador's PRD. After López Obrador's election as Mexican president in 2018, he appointed Bartlett to become the CEO of

Comisión Federal de Electricidad The Comisión Federal de Electricidad () is the Government-owned company, state-owned electric utility of Mexico, widely known as CFE. The Mexican Constitution of Mexico, constitution states that the government is responsible for the control and ...

(CFE), the state-owned electric utility of Mexico, the country's second most powerful state-owned company after PEMEX. Bartlett has been described as a corrupt politician.

Controversy

In a 3-part article series, investigative journalist Charles Bowden offers eyewitness accounts of Bartlett's involvement (along with other senior Mexican political, law enforcement, security and military officials) in the decision to order the kidnap, torture and murder of American DEA officer Enrique S. "Kiki" Camarena in 1985 in order to shut down his successful campaign against the

Guadalajara Cartel The Guadalajara Cartel (), also known as The Federation (), was a Mexican drug cartel which was formed in the late 1970s by Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo, Rafael Caro Quintero, and Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo in order to ship cocaine and marijuan ...

. In these accounts, cartel figures repeatedly mention they expect Bartlett Díaz to one day become

President of Mexico The president of Mexico (), officially the president of the United Mexican States (), is the head of state and head of government of Mexico. Under the Constitution of Mexico, the president heads the executive branch of the federal government and ...

, with the implication that they will prosper as a result. Earlier accounts claimed that DEA suspicions about Bartlett Díaz's involvement in the murder led to the ruling PRI party's refusal to consider him as a presidential candidate, leading to the selection of

Carlos Salinas de Gortari Carlos Salinas de Gortari (; born 3 April 1948) is a Mexicans, Mexican economist, historían and former politician who served as the 60th president of Mexico from 1988 to 1994. Considered the frontman of Mexican Neoliberalism by formulating, p ...

in Bartlett's place.

References

External links

La CFE de Bartlett se convierte en una máquina de control político en México
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bartlett, Manuel 1936 births Governors of Puebla Living people Institutional Revolutionary Party politicians Secretaries of the interior of Mexico Mexican people of Cornish descent 20th-century Mexican politicians Politicians from Puebla (city) National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni Academic staff of the National Autonomous University of Mexico Senators of the LVIII and LIX Legislatures of Mexico

Controversy

See also

References

External links