Mexico’s New President Needs to Bust Its Business Cartels

Whoever is elected Mexico’s next president on Sunday must confront an existential challenge from cartels -- and not just the drug syndicates that have turned swathes of the country into 24/7 shooting galleries.

From bread, beer and milk to telephones, television and electricity, monopolies and duopolies dominate Mexico’s economy. Loosening their grip would give Mexican consumers more choices and more money to spend. It would also spur economic development and invigorate political and economic institutions, thereby helping society combat the effects of the drug war violence that has led to more than 47,000 deaths over the past six years.