U.S. Eyes More Sanctions on Mexican Politicians Over Alleged Cartel Ties: Report

The Trump administration has recently imposed travel restrictions on two Mexican officials it believes are linked to drug-related corruption in their country. U.S. officials are now reportedly saying more individuals are set to be targeted as they continue flagging officials for alleged ties to criminal organizations, particularly drug cartels.

Baja California Gov. Marina del Pilar Ávila and her husband — a former congressman — recently had their U.S. visas revoked. Separately, Mexican media outlets reported that the visa of Tamaulipas Gov. Américo Villarreal was also revoked, even though that has not been officially confirmed as visa records are confidential under U.S. law.

According to the nonprofit investigative outlet ProPublica, U.S. authorities are reviewing a list of several dozen Mexican public officials — most of them affiliated with President Claudia Sheinbaum's Morena party — who may face visa revocations and possible sanctions by the U.S. Treasury Department.

Three U.S. officials told the outlet that visa actions are expected to be accompanied by economic sanctions. These measures could block individuals from conducting business with U.S. companies and freeze any assets they may hold in the United States.

The review reportedly began with a small White House team that requested information from law enforcement agencies about Mexican political, military and government figures with suspected criminal ties.

One of the officials told ProPublica the investigation overlaps with a 2019 file compiled by the Drug Enforcement Administration. That file includes intelligence on about 35 Mexican officials and was created after then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador began restricting Mexico's cooperation with U.S. counterdrug operations.

Allegations of high-level corruption within the Mexican government are not new. In 2024, former Mexican Public Security Secretary Genaro García Luna was convicted in a U.S. federal court of accepting bribes from the Sinaloa cartel. He was sentenced to more than 38 years in prison.

García Luna is the highest-ranking Mexican official ever convicted in a U.S. court. His sentencing is seen by analysts as a potential turning point in how the United States investigates Mexican officials suspected of cartel ties.

Last September, García Luna accused López Obrador and members of his inner circle of having connections to the Sinaloa cartel.

"It is public knowledge and documented in the official records of Mexico and the U.S. — the contacts, videos, photographs, communications and management records between the president of Mexico, Andrés López Obrador, and his associates with drug cartel leaders and their families," García Luna wrote in a four-page letter, according to Mexican journalist Jesús Lemus.

The development comes amid broader U.S. policy changes under the Trump administration, including a newly introduced "one-strike" visa revocation policy. Outlined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in late April, the policy states that any non-U.S. citizen found in violation of U.S. laws may face immediate revocation of their visa or residency status.