Jorge Máynez

Jorge Álvarez Máynez (born 8 July 1985) is a Mexican politician and was a candidate for the 2024 Mexican presidential election. He has served as a deputy of the Congress of the Union from 2015 to 2018 and from 2021 to 2024, as well as a state deputy in the Congress of Zacatecas from 2010 to 2013.

In 2024, he was nominated as the presidential candidate of Citizens' Movement for the 2024 general election.

Early years and education
Máynez was born in Zacatecas, Zacatecas, on 8 July 1985 to Felipe Álvarez Calderón and Gabriela Máynez. He has one older sister, Ana Gabriela. His father was the founder of the Communist Party of Zacatecas.

Education
Máynez earned his bachelor's degree in international relations at the ITESO, Universidad Jesuita de Guadalajara, in 2006. Following this, he enrolled at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM), where he obtained a master's degree in public administration and public policies in 2008, followed by a master's degree in international studies in 2010. In 2019, he earned a master's degree in constitutional law and human rights at the Centro de Estudios Jurídicos Carbonell.

Early political career
In 2003, Máynez joined the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD). From 2004 to 2007, he served as a regidor in the municipality of Zacatecas during Gerardo de Jesús Félix Domínguez's tenure as municipal president. Subsequently, from 2007 to 2010, he served as a regidor of municipality of Guadalupe.

Local deputy
In the 2010 state elections in Zacatecas, he was nominated by the New Alliance Party as a deputy to the Congress of Zacatecas, backed by the coalition Primero Zacatecas, comprising the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) and the Ecologist Green Party of Mexico. He was elected to represent Zacatecas's 5th district from 2010 to 2013.

During his tenure, he caucused with the PRI, and served as the president of the Municipal Strengthening Commission and as the secretary of the Culture Commission. In 2011, he sponsored a civil union bill, which was met with opposition from the National Action Party, resulting in its committee stall.

In April 2013, Máynez announced that he was joining Citizen's Movement and was contending for municipal president of Guadalupe in the 2013 Zacatecas state elections. He placed in third, only receiving 12.9% of the vote.

2015
In the 2015 legislative election, he was nominated by Citizens' Movement as a plurinominal deputy representing the first electoral region.

2021
In the 2021 legislative election, he was once again nominated by Citizens' Movement as a plurinominal deputy representing the first electoral region.

Tenure
On 29 July 2021, Máynez was unanimously designated as the coordinator of the Citizen's Movement caucus in the Chamber of Deputies for the LXV Legislature. He served in this position until February 2024, when he was succeeded by Braulio López Ochoa Mijares.

In April 2022, Máynez directed his party to join opposition parties in voting against López Obrador's proposed energy reform, which failed to reach the two-thirds majority needed to pass. He claimed that the reform would increase tariffs, delay progress in the transition to clean energy, and violate international agreements. Days later, he voted for the president's backup plan, a reform to the Mining Law, which nationalized lithium.

In June 2022, at the invitation of the Verkhovna Rada, Máynez and three other deputies traveled to Ukraine to show support for the country during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, his visit was criticized as "war tourism" and many criticized his prioritizing of the war in Ukraine over the existing violence in the state of Zacatecas. In response, the group of deputies stated that the trip was self-funded, and Máynez emphasized that he was working on legislation related to security issues in Mexico.

Throughout late 2022, Máynez voiced his opposition to López Obrador's proposed electoral reform, which he deemed antidemocratic. In December 2022, he voted against the reform, which failed to reach the two-thirds majority. Máynez also voted against the backup reform, "Plan B", which passed with a majority. Once it passed, Máynez filed an amparo in order to delay and cancel the law. Máynez accused the Institutional Revolutionary Party of breaking an agreement to deny a quorum to prevent a vote on "Plan B", which other opposition parties had followed by not voting.

On 27 February 2024, Máynez sought temporary leave from his seat to pursue the presidency in the 2024 general election. During his absence, Martín Vivanco Lira was to assume his role, but declined to be sworn in. The Federal Electoral Tribunal ordered Carlos Alberto León García to fill in the vacancy, and he was sworn in on 30 April.

Commission assignments
In the LXIII Legislature (2015–2018):
 * Public Education and Educational Services Commission
 * Culture and Cinematography Commission

In the LXV Legislature (2021–2024):
 * Social Economy and Cooperative Development Commission
 * Metropolitan Areas Commission

Nomination
On 19 November 2023, Máynez joined the presidential campaign of Samuel García, the presidential candidate for Citizens' Movement and governor of Nuevo León. However, on 2 December 2023, García withdrew from the race due to a political crisis over the appointment of an interim governor to replace him, prompting Citizens' Movement to select another candidate. On 9 January 2024, García announced that the party had selected Máynez as the new presidential candidate, with the party officially confirming him as the nominee the next day. Máynez formally registered his candidacy on 22 February 2024.

General election
In his platform, Máynez called for increasing the use of solar and wind energy, increasing nearshoring, increasing the minimum wage to MXN $10,000 a month, a 40-hour work week, demilitarisation, and the legalization and regulation of marijuana. Positioning himself as an alternative to Claudia Sheinbaum and Xóchitl Gálvez, Máynez focused on appealing to younger voters.

When the campaigning period started on 1 March, polling indicated that Máynez was the least known candidate out of the three, projected to receive about 5% of the popular vote. His recognition remained low until the first presidential debate on 7 April, during which he went viral, largely due to memes about his constant smiling. He reached the #1 spot on Mexico's trending list on Twitter, and his TikTok account gained more followers than Xóchitl Gálvez, the candidate for Fuerza y Corazón por México. By 28 April, the date of the second presidential debate, some of Máynez's polling numbers had broken into the double digits, hovering around 10%. During the debate, he led in average interest according to Google Trends, although Claudia Sheinbaum, the candidate for Sigamos Haciendo Historia, had higher peak interest levels.

In the leadup to the third debate, leaders of Fuerza y Corazón por México repeatedly urged Máynez to step down and join their coalition, with Máynez rejecting these calls and countering by suggesting they withdraw their support for Gálvez. On 14 May, Alejandro Moreno Cárdenas proposed that Máynez withdraw before the third debate in exchange for Moreno resigning as president of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Máynez called the move desperate and responded that he would consider discussing the matter with Beatriz Paredes if she were made president of the PRI, but only after the debate. Luis Donaldo Colosio Riojas, a member of Citizens' Movement, urged either Máynez or Gálvez to withdraw in support of the other in order to form a true opposition to Sigamos Haciendo Historia.

On 22 May, a campaign event attended by Máynez for the Citizens' Movement mayoral candidate in San Pedro Garza García, Nuevo León, saw the stage get toppled during strong winds while he was speaking, killing nine people and injuring 210 others. Máynez was able to run towards the back of the stage and was unharmed. Máynez suspended his upcoming campaign events and visited the injured people in hospitals. He returned to Mexico City on 24 May and resumed campaign activities.

On the final day of campaigning, 29 May, Máynez visited his 50th university. Later that day, he held his closing rally, called Máynez Capital Fest, at Auditorio Blackberry in Mexico City. Despite remaining in a distant third at the end of the campaign period, many polling companies noted that Máynez experienced the most significant growth in recognition and support. He ranked as the second most popular candidate, with his approval rating behind Claudia Sheinbaum but ahead of Xóchitl Gálvez. Analysts suggested that although Máynez was in third place, his rising popularity could benefit Citizens' Movement in the legislative and local elections.

A song called Presidente Máynez, performed by Yuawi López, was released on 6 March 2024 as part of Máynez's campaign. It reached #2 on the Viral 50 in Mexico on 12 April, later reaching the top spot on 15 April. By the end of the campaigning period, it had garnered more than 6.7 million views on YouTube and over 4.6 million streams on Spotify.

Family
In 2015, he married actress Karina Gidi; the following year, they divorced. He had his first child in 2018 with his partner, Sarah Aguilar Flaschka. In 2023, he had a second child.