Everyday Killings in Mexico Drop Thirty-Seven Percent Under the Sheinbaum Administration, Per Government Statistics

The typical count of daily homicides per month in Mexico has decreased by more than a third since President Claudia Sheinbaum began her term, per new official data. Nevertheless, security experts have advised that murder data may not signal improved countrywide safety.

Marked Drop in Daily Averages

There was an mean of close to 55 murders a day in November compared with roughly 87 when the President began the presidential office in September of last year. This information was provided by the chief of the nation's federal safety agency, Marcela Figueroa Franco, during the leader's regular news conference on a recent Tuesday.

“The outcome in murders that we’ve had over these past months is extremely significant,” Claudia Sheinbaum stated, adding that in November the least amount of homicides were recorded for any single November in the past decade.

Historical Background and Government Plan

Violent cartel rivalries, combined with the administration's heavily military campaigns to take on the drug gangs, have made Mexico’s homicide numbers escalate in recent times. The rate reached a record high of 36,773 homicides in 2020, as reported by the country’s national statistics office.

That gave Mexico a murder figure over four times higher than the United States. From that point, killings have been on the downward trend, dropping to 33,550 in the last calendar year. Claudia Sheinbaum has credited her public safety strategy for an ostensibly steeper decline in homicides this year.

At a media briefing in the summer, the head of state declared: “We have a plan, we have tracking of the plan, and we have specific monitoring town by town in certain cases. The plan is effective. And we have to keep working at it each day.”

The central components of the President's security strategy include:

• Bolstering Mexico’s domestic security force.
• Advancing information gathering and investigative work.
• Enhanced coordination between various departments.

Analyst Caution and Statistical Limitations

However, public safety experts urged caution that using murder data to assess the situation of peace was misleading. This is especially true in light of the uptick in other crimes such as forced disappearances.

“This would be positive information if this were a reduction, but I think we must not just focus on the homicide numbers and say: ‘Well then, good,’” stated Cecilia Farfán-Méndez, an authority on Mexican organised crime. “I would be tentatively optimistic.”

According to the policy research thinktank Mexico Evalúa, homicides overall declined by more than 20% in the first 10 months of this year versus the same period the previous year. However, missing persons cases have risen by 15% and in some regions have surged by as much as 200%.

“Statistics on murders is no longer valid for assessing the situation of public insecurity,” stated Armando Vargas, a security analyst at Mexico Evalúa. “First, we have police and investigators who do not have the ability or the will to properly identify and classify bodies. Second, organized [criminals] … have the ability to hide violent acts through abductions.”

Vargas pointed out that relying on monthly means of everyday killings was additionally an issue because it might obscure periods when there were especially spiking numbers of killings.

“Employing the per-day mean makes surges of violent crime less visible,” he concluded.

Detentions and Seizures as Metrics of Progress

An area where the government can cite the success of its security plan is on detentions and seizures. Nearly 40,000 people were apprehended between last October and November 2025 for major crimes, according to government data. More than 20,000 firearms were taken and 311 tons of drugs intercepted.

“Donald Trump can't accuse President Sheinbaum of doing nothing, because actually she is accomplishing a lot with these thousands of detentions, many thousands of confiscations, and all the operational weakening of organised crime. It’s extremely politically advantageous,” stated Vargas.

Persistent Violence and Public Frustration

However notwithstanding these efforts, Mexico remains plagued by high violence, with a number of regions in the grip of cartel-fueled bloodshed. Last month there was a high-profile murder of a popular mayor in the region of Michoacan, among 10 mayors killed in the last year.

Weeks later, many thousands of young people protested in Mexico City and across the country to voice their frustration at corruption and drug violence.

“The government presents [data] in a manner to construct a narrative of safety. Politically it’s very potent, from a social perspective it’s very problematic,” Vargas said.