Ebrard asks to be dropped from 2030 lists, puts USMCA first
The economy secretary wants to close the treaty review before 2026 ends and says it will stay in force for 10 years.
Marcelo Ebrard asked to be removed from lists of 2030 presidential hopefuls. His priority, he said, is to finish the review of the USMCA, known in Mexico as the T-MEC, in 2026. Mexico's economy secretary spoke to reporters Tuesday after more than three hours before the Senate's coordinating board and committees.
"Erase me from your lists, don't worry," he said. He made clear he does not want to be ruled out for good: "Never kill me. Just erase me." On his future he was terse: "I'm working on what I'm working on."
The meeting was closed to the press, so what is known comes from Ebrard's own account afterward. He told senators the treaty will stay in force for 10 years and that the negotiation "has been successful," though he said there was a risk during the year that the review would fail.
Annual reviews will follow. The 2026 one will be the broadest, he assumes, and each will leave fewer open issues. Ebrard wants to finish it before the year ends to give investors certainty, and expects the treaty's new phase to be signed in late 2026.
The sectors of greatest concern are autos, steel and aluminum, which have their own negotiations because of their supply chains. On exports, he said they keep growing and that Mexico has the lowest tariff.
Security, drug trafficking and extradition issues, he maintained, have not affected the trade review: other agencies handle them.
His answer comes after the early "unveiling" of Omar García Harfuch, the security secretary, as a possible candidate. Manuel Velasco, who leads the Green Party's senators, said his party would want to nominate Ebrard in 2030. Ebrard had already asked on Oct. 17: "Please, if you want, take me off the list."
The treaty governs Mexico's trade with its main partner, so the date the review closes matters beyond the succession race.
Ebrard credited the outcome of the negotiation to the conciliatory attitude of President Claudia Sheinbaum, who will travel to Shenzhen, China, for the APEC summit on Nov. 18 and 19.
