Everyday Killings in Mexico Drop Over a Third During President Sheinbaum, As per Official Statistics

The mean figure of everyday homicides monthly in the country has decreased by thirty-seven percent since President Claudia Sheinbaum took office, according to new government figures. However, security experts have cautioned that homicide data could fail to signal enhanced countrywide stability.

Significant Reduction in Per-Day Numbers

Officials reported an mean of nearly 55 killings a day in November as opposed to almost 87 when Claudia Sheinbaum began the presidency in September. This data was provided by the chief of the country’s national safety system, Marcela Figueroa Franco, during the leader's regular press briefing on a recent Tuesday.

“The outcome in homicides that have been recorded in these past months is extremely significant,” Claudia Sheinbaum said, adding that in November the least number of homicides were registered for any November in the past 10 years.

Recent Background and Government Strategy

Violent organized crime rivalries, combined with the government’s highly militarised campaigns to confront the drug gangs, have led to Mexico’s murder rate rise sharply in the past few years. The figure hit a peak of 36,773 killings in 2020, according to the nation's national statistics agency.

That meant Mexico a homicide figure over 4x greater than the US. However, murders have been on the downward trend, dropping to 33,550 last year. The President has credited her national security approach for an apparently steeper reduction in homicides in the current year.

At a media briefing in the summer, the President said: “There is a plan, there is monitoring of the plan, and we have specific monitoring town by town in some cases. The approach functions. And we have to keep working at it daily.”

The key pillars of Sheinbaum’s safety plan include:

• Reinforcing Mexico’s national guard.
• Enhancing intelligence and investigation capabilities.
• Increased coordination between government departments.

Expert Skepticism and Statistical Limitations

But, public safety researchers urged caution that using murder statistics to paint a picture of pacification was flawed. This is especially true in light of the increase in other crimes such as abductions.

“It would be excellent information if this were a decrease, but I think we shouldn't just look at the homicide data and think: ‘Alright, great,’” stated Cecilia Farfán-Méndez, an expert on Mexican organised crime. “I would be tentatively hopeful.”

Per the policy research organization Mexico Evalúa, killings in total declined by over 20% in the first 10 months of this year relative to the identical timeframe the previous year. But, disappearances have gone up by 15% and in some states have risen by up to 200%.

“Numbers on murders is no longer reliable for gauging the reality of violence,” stated Armando Vargas, a security analyst at Mexico Evalúa. “First, we have law enforcement and investigators who do not have the ability or the will to correctly recognize and classify corpses. Second, organised [criminals] … have the capability to mask violence through abductions.”

Vargas added that using month-to-month means of everyday homicides was also problematic because it may obscure days when there were particularly elevated numbers of killings.

“Employing the daily average renders spikes of violence unseen,” he stated.

Detentions and Seizures as Metrics of Success

An area where the government can point to the success of its safety plan is on arrests and seizures. Close to 40,000 individuals were arrested between October 2024 and November 2025 for high-impact crimes, per official figures. More than 20,000 guns were seized and 311 tons of narcotics intercepted.

“Donald Trump can't accuse President Sheinbaum of not acting, because the reality is she is doing a lot with these many thousands of detentions, thousands of seizures, and all the operational degrading of criminal groups. It’s highly politically profitable,” said Vargas.

Ongoing Unrest and Societal Frustration

But notwithstanding these actions, Mexico is still grappling with severe violence, with several states in the throes of cartel-fueled conflict. Recently there was a notable assassination of a popular local official in the state of Michoacan, among 10 local leaders killed in the last year.

Weeks later, many thousands of young people demonstrated in Mexico City and throughout the country to voice their outrage at graft and narco-violence.

“The federal government presents [data] in a manner to build a picture of security. Politically it’s very potent, socially it’s highly questionable,” the analyst concluded.