Rubén Rocha Moya

Rubén Rocha Moya
Rocha in 2024
Governor of Sinaloa
In office
21 August 2026 – 23 August 2026
Preceded byYeraldine Bonilla Valverde
Succeeded byGraciela Domínguez Nava
In office
1 November 2021 – 2 May 2026
Preceded byQuirino Ordaz Coppel
Succeeded byYeraldine Bonilla Valverde (acting)
Member of the Senate of the Republic
In office
29 August 2018 – 5 March 2021
Preceded byAarón Irízar López
Succeeded byRaúl Elenes Angulo
ConstituencySinaloa
Rector of the Autonomous University of Sinaloa
In office
8 June 1993 – 7 June 1997
Preceded byDavid Moreno Lizárraga
Succeeded byJorge Luis Guevara Reynaga
Member of the Congress of Sinaloa
In office
1 December 1983 – 30 November 1986
ConstituencyProportional representation
Personal details
Born (1949-06-15) 15 June 1949
Batequitas, Badiraguato, Sinaloa, Mexico
PartyNational Regeneration Movement (since 2017)
Other political
affiliations
Party of the Democratic Revolution (1998–2002)
Unified Socialist Party of Mexico (1983–1987)
Spouse
Socorro Ruiz Carrasco
​
​
(m. 1973; died 2014)​
Children4

Rubén Rocha Moya (born 15 June 1949) is a Mexican politician and educator who has recently served twice as the Governor of Sinaloa serving from 21 to 23 August 2026, previously serving from November 2021 until May 2026. A member of the National Regeneration Movement (MORENA), Rocha previously served in the Senate from 2018 to 2021.

Rocha was previously the rector of the Autonomous University of Sinaloa (UAS) in the 1990s, a state deputy in 1983–1986, and a gubernatorial candidate in both 1986 and 1998.

In April 2026, Rocha was indicted by the United States Department of Justice on charges of conspiring with the Sinaloa Cartel.[1] Rocha left his office as Governor of Sinaloa temporarily on 2 May 2026, with Yeraldine Bonilla Valverde took office as interim governor, that same day.[2] Rocha returned to his office on 21 August 2026[3], but after backlash from his own party, he once again requested leave after being only one day in office, being approved on 23 August 2026.[4][5][6]

Early life

Rocha Moya was born in Batequitas, a locality in Badiraguato, Sinaloa, as one of six children[7] and obtained his degree as a mathematics teacher from the Escuela Normal Superior de Oaxaca.[8] However, it was his time at a rural teachers' school in Sonora that introduced him to left-wing thought; he rose through the ranks and served as the general secretary of the Federation of Rural Socialist Students from 1968 to 1969.[7] In his first job, as a teacher in Ciudad Obregón, Sonora, Rocha joined the Mexican Communist Party.[7]

In 1972, Rocha returned to his home state and became a physics and mathematics teacher at the preparatory school in Guamúchil, where he became the head of the campus. The next year, Rocha was successful in affiliating the institution with the Autonomous University of Sinaloa.[7] He would remain in Guamúchil until 1980, when he was offered a position as press secretary for the university's teachers' union; during this time, he successfully helped fight attempts by Governor Antonio Toledo Corro to remove the preparatory schools from the UAS system.[7] In 1983, Rocha was named the union's general secretary.[7]

Political career

First legislative position and UAS rectorship

As a result of his ascendancy in the UAS union, Rocha was named to the party list of deputies to the state legislature for the Unified Socialist Party of Mexico, becoming part of the state's first group of leftist legislators.[7] After his three-year term ended in 1986, Rocha Moya was a gubernatorial candidate for the leftist Movimiento Popular Sinaloense party[8] and then took a break to pursue his master's degree at the Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro.[7]

Rocha returned to Sinaloa in 1989 at the invitation of David Moreno Lizárraga, the newly elected UAS rector, to serve as his general secretary, the second-highest leadership position. This set Rocha up to be elected four years later as rector, where he served until 1997.[7] During his tenure, the university began offering its first doctorate degree, constructed new sports facilities and connected its campuses in Culiacán, Los Mochis and Mazatlán by fiber-optic link.[7]

After the UAS: second gubernatorial bid

Rocha Moya (left) with Andrés Manuel López Obrador on the campaign trail in 1998

A year after the end of his rectorship, Rocha made a second bid for governor of Sinaloa in 1998, this time as the candidate of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD).[7] Rocha finished third, while the PRD obtained its best result in the state to date, winning one mayoral race and five seats in the legislature.[7] After the election, Rocha became a PRD member, and one internal faction proposed him as the head of the state party; other officials, seeing Rocha as a threat to their careers, blocked him from running, which led the national party organization to sanction the state committee and to his resignation from the PRD in 2002.[7]

From 2005 to 2010, Rocha served as the coordinator of advisors to Institutional Revolutionary Party governor Jesús Vizcarra Calderón.[7] Despite the connection to a PRI official, Rocha noted that he never stopped supporting leftist candidates and never became a PRI member.[7]

In 2013, due to his PRI connections,[7] Rocha was named the deputy director of training at the Institute for Social Security and Services for State Workers (ISSSTE).[8] He served in that position until Governor Quirino Ordaz Coppel asked him to serve as an adviser again, even though Rocha had become a member of MORENA, having known Andrés Manuel López Obrador since his time in the PRD.[7]

Senate

In 2018, Rocha Moya ran for elected office for the first time in two decades. The Senate ticket of Rocha and Imelda Castro Castro, for the Juntos Haremos Historia alliance, received more than 604,000 votes—nearly twice the second-place finishers—and both candidates won election.[9]

In the 54th Congress, Rocha served on five commissions[8] and was president of the Education Commission.[10] During his presidency, the Senate approved a new General Law of Higher Education, requiring the Mexican state to ensure free access to the higher education system beginning in 2022.[11]

In 2020, while a senator, he obtained a law degree from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).[12]

2021 gubernatorial campaign

In March 2021, MORENA named Rocha Moya as its gubernatorial candidate for Sinaloa; he had been tabbed as a potential candidate for months, though rumors circulated that he would be offered the position of Secretary of Public Education.[13] He took leave from the Senate, where his alternate, Raúl Elenes Angulo, was sworn in.[14] He was also named the candidate of the state-level Sinaloa Party (PAS), even though even Rocha Moya and López Obrador had questioned the Morena-PAS alliance.[15]

Polling before the election showed a close race with Va por México coalition candidate Mario Zamora Gastélum.[16] However, quick count results on election night showed the race to have been far less competitive, with Rocha Moya obtaining 55 percent of the vote.[17]

Governorship of Sinaloa

Allegations prior to U.S. indictment

Zambada letter and Cuén Ojeda killing

On 25 July 2024, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, was abducted at a ranch outside Culiacán and flown to the United States, where he was arrested. Héctor Melesio Cuén Ojeda, a former rector of the Autonomous University of Sinaloa and a former ally of Rocha Moya, was killed at the property the same day.[18]

In a letter released by his lawyer on 10 August, Zambada said that he had gone to the ranch expecting to mediate a dispute between Rocha Moya and Cuén, and that Joaquín Guzmán López had told him the governor would be present.[18][19] Rocha Moya claimed that he had no knowledge of any such meeting and had been in the United States visiting family that day.[20][21] The Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) called for his resignation and Citizens' Movement (MC) asked the federal government to distance itself from him.[22]

The Sinaloa state prosecutor's office reported that Cuén had been shot during an attempted robbery at a petrol station north of Culiacán. The federal Attorney General's Office (FGR) found that account inconsistent with the evidence and concluded that he had been killed at the ranch.[23][24] The exposure of the cover-up culminated in the resignation of the state prosecutor, Sara Bruna Quiñónez Estrada, in August 2024.[25][26][27]

Public and journalistic allegations

In September 2024, amid infighting in the Sinaloa Cartel, cartel banners and flyers appeared in several locations in Sinaloa, including Culiacán, Los Mochis, and Mazatlán. According to media reports, some contained images of individuals identified as members of "Los Chapitos" alongside Rocha Moya and Senator Enrique Inzunza Cázarez, and alleged collaboration between political figures and the faction.[28][29] In November 2024, a banner in Culiacán called for the cancellation of the Expo Ganadera event, accused the governor of supporting the Chapitos faction, and included threats against him and his family;[30] the event was subsequently canceled.[31]

Journalist Anabel Hernández reported that Rocha Moya’s political rise and 2021 gubernatorial campaign were allegedly facilitated by factions of the Sinaloa Cartel, including "Los Chapitos" and intermediaries linked to Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, framing it as part of a broader system of "narco-politics" in Sinaloa.[32] Hernández pointed to the contents of Zambada's letter as evidence of close political-criminal coordination.[33] She also suggested that inconsistencies surrounding Cuén Ojeda’s killing and the official narrative of Zambada’s capture indicated a possible state-level cover-up,[33] and in later 2025 commentary reiterated claims of systemic collusion between political actors and organized crime, particularly through protection arrangements in exchange for electoral support.[34]

In February 2026, legal and civil society organizations submitted a criminal complaint before the FGR, accusing the governor of offenses including organized crime, misuse of public office, and concealment. The complaint was supported by documentation and arguments citing an alleged "crisis of insecurity" in the state, purported links between public officials and criminal groups, and claims that Rocha Moya had previously acknowledged the need to reach agreements with organized crime during his 2021 gubernatorial campaign.[35] The complainants also pointed to the handling of the killing of Héctor Melesio Cuén Ojeda and the circumstances surrounding the July 2024 capture of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada as part of the alleged evidence.[35][36]

In late April 2026, Los Angeles Times reported that the United States government had revoked Rocha Moya's visa in 2025.[37][38]

U.S. indictment

In a broader U.S. policy shift that began treating cartel-related activities as acts of terrorism,[39] United States authorities submitted requests for the provisional arrest of Rocha Moya and other accused individuals for purposes of extradition.[40] The requests were received on 28 April through the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs, which referred the matter to the Attorney General's Office (FGR) for evaluation.[41]

On 29 April 2026, U.S. prosecutors unsealed an indictment in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York charging Rocha Moya with conspiring with the Sinaloa Cartel.[42] U.S. prosecutors alleged that Rocha accepted bribes and received electoral assistance from the cartel in exchange for providing political protection to its members.[1] According to press reports and the indictment, this protection was instrumental in facilitating the mass shipment of fentanyl into the United States, as state resources were allegedly used to shield the cartel's laboratory operations and logistical routes from federal interference.[43] The indictment also named nine other current and former officials, including Senator Enrique Inzunza Cázarez and Culiacán Mayor Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil, both considered potential gubernatorial candidates for the upcoming 2027 elections.[44][45] Rocha Moya denied all allegations, describing the indictment as a violation of Mexico’s sovereignty and constitutional order,[46][47] stating:

This attack is not directed solely at me, but at the Fourth Transformation movement, its iconic leaders, and the Mexican men and women who represent that cause.[48]

In response, President Claudia Sheinbaum and other members of the Morena party expressed their support for Rocha, questioning the lack of "conclusive physical evidence",[49][50][51] and suggesting the charges were politically motivated.[52] The FGR rejected the extradition request, citing a lack of evidence and necessary documents, and requested that U.S. authorities provide additional evidentiary materials to support the case.[53]

On 1 May, Rocha Moya requested a temporary leave of absence from his position to facilitate an investigation by the FGR into allegations against him.[54][55] It was later reported that on 6 May, the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) issued Agreement 156/2026, which ordered the freezing of bank accounts belonging to Rocha Moya.[56]

Rocha Moya resumed office on 21 August 2026[57] but requested a further indefinite leave of absence the following day.[58]

Personal life

In 1973, Rocha married Socorro Ruiz Carrasco, with whom he had four children; Ruiz died in 2014.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 Nicas, Jack (29 April 2026). "U.S. Indicts Mexican Governor on Accusations of Aiding Cartels". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  2. ↑ Pérez, Marcos; Vizcarra, David Marcial (2 May 2026). "Rocha Moya deja temporalmente la gubernatura de Sinaloa para permitir que la Fiscalía General lo investigue". El País México (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  3. ↑ Ferri, Pablo; Vizcarra, Marcos (21 August 2026). "Rubén Rocha regresa como gobernador de Sinaloa". EL PAÍS (in Spanish).
  4. ↑ "Rubén Rocha Moya (@rochamoya_) on X". X (formerly Twitter). 23 August 2026. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "Congreso de Sinaloa Aprueba Por Segunda Ocasión a Rocha Moya Licencia para Separarse del Cargo". N+ (in Mexican Spanish). 23 August 2026. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
  6. ↑ Ferri, Pablo; Vizcarra, Marcos (21 August 2026). "Rubén Rocha regresa como gobernador de Sinaloa". EL PAÍS (in Spanish).
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Beltrán, José Alfredo (22 May 2018). "Carrera por el Senado: La resurrección de Rubén Rocha Moya". Noroeste (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Perfil: Sen. Rubén Rocha Moya, LXIV Legislatura". Sistema de Información Legislativa (SIL) (in Spanish). SEGOB. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  9. ↑ Cabrera Martínez, Javier (8 July 2018). "Rubén Rocha e Imelda Castro reciben constancia de mayoría en Sinaloa". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  10. ↑ Armenta, América (2 March 2021). "Senado otorga licencia a Rubén Rocha Moya para buscar la Gubernatura de Sinaloa". Noroeste (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  11. ↑ Ballinas, Víctor; Becerril, Andrea (10 December 2020). "Aprueba el Senado la nueva Ley General de Educación Superior". La Jornada (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  12. ↑ "¿Quién es Rubén Rocha Moya, candidato de Morena a la gubernatura de Sinaloa?". ContraReplica (in Spanish). 30 December 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  13. ↑ Chaparro, Jorge (17 December 2020). "Rubén Rocha aclara que no ocupará el cargo de secretario de Educación Pública". La Razón. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  14. ↑ "Raúl Elenes deja la Conapesca y asume la curul del Senado en relevo de Rubén Rocha Moya". El Debate (in European Spanish). 10 March 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  15. ↑ Sánchez, Irene (25 March 2021). "Rubén Rocha, abanderado de Morena al gobierno de Sinaloa". La Jornada (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  16. ↑ "Encuesta. En Sinaloa se prevé empate técnico". El Universal (in Spanish). 2 June 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  17. ↑ "Conteo rápido da triunfo a Rubén Rocha Moya en Sinaloa". Excélsior (in Spanish). 7 June 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  18. 1 2 Verza, María (10 August 2024). "Mexican drug lord 'El Mayo' Zambada says he was ambushed and kidnapped before being taken to the US". Associated Press. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  19. ↑ "Rubén Rocha, acusado por EU: ¿Qué dice carta del 'Mayo' sobre presunto vínculo con Los Chapitos?". El Financiero (in Spanish). 29 April 2026. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  20. ↑ Appleby, Peter; Asmann, Parker (14 August 2024). "Truth or Lie? A Letter From 'Mayo' Zambada Fuels Mexico-US Tensions Over Sinaloa Cartel Arrests". InSight Crime. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  21. ↑ Sánchez, Irene (15 October 2024). "Insiste el gobernador Rocha Moya en que él estaba en EU el día del arresto de El Mayo" (in Spanish). La Jornada. Retrieved 1 May 2026.
  22. ↑ "Oposición pide la renuncia de Rocha Moya y critica a gobernadores que lo respaldan tras informe de la FGR que confirma datos de "El Mayo"". Latinus (in Spanish). 22 August 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2026.
  23. ↑ "Estas son las razones de la FGR para concluir que Melesio Cuén fue herido en la finca donde estaba 'El Mayo' Zambada". Aristegui Noticias (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  24. ↑ Saldaña, Iván Evair (11 August 2024). "Investiga FGR relación de asesinato del ex rector con 'El Mayo' y Joaquín Guzmán". La Jornada (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  25. ↑ "¿Quién es Sara Bruna?: fiscal de Sinaloa que renunció por caso Cuén". Grupo Milenio (in Spanish). 16 August 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  26. ↑ "In Mexico's bloodied Sinaloa state, police and prosecutors conspired to cover up opponent's killing". AP News. 20 October 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  27. ↑ Camhaji, Elías (16 August 2024). "López Obrador pide una investigación a fondo del asesinato de Héctor Cuén tras los errores de la Fiscalía de Sinaloa". El País México (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  28. ↑ Carrasco, Carolina (28 September 2024). "Estos son los políticos y criminales relacionados a "Los Chapitos" en narcovolantes que circulan en Sinaloa". infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  29. ↑ "(FOTOS) 'Llueven narcovolantes' en Sinaloa contra Chapitos… y hasta el gobernador". RadioFórmula. 27 September 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  30. ↑ Granados, Alejandro (10 November 2024). "Narcomanta dirigida a Rubén Rocha Moya pide cancelar la Feria Ganadera en Sinaloa". Publimetro México (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  31. ↑ "Expo Ganadera de Sinaloa, cancelada tras narcomanta". Expreso (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  32. ↑ Tapia Sandoval, Anayeli (12 August 2024). "Así fue como el Cártel de Sinaloa impulsó la candidatura de Rubén Rocha Moya, según Anabel Hernández". infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  33. 1 2 Tapia Sandoval, Anayeli (15 August 2024). "¿Por qué al Mayo Zambada le interesaba mediar la relación de Cuén Ojeda y Rocha Moya? Esto dice Anabel Hernández". infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  34. ↑ Alvarez, Benjamín (13 March 2025). "Denuncian en EU a Gobernadores de Sinaloa y Tamaulipas, por nexos con el narco: Anabel Hernández". Contramuro (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  35. 1 2 "Organizaciones de abogados de Sinaloa denuncian ante la FGR a Rubén Rocha Moya por delincuencia organizada". LatinUS (in Spanish). 17 February 2026. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  36. ↑ "Denuncian ante FGR a Rocha Moya por presunta delincuencia organizada". Aristegui Noticias (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  37. ↑ Fisher, Steve (26 April 2026). "U.S. may soon target Mexican politicians in anti-corruption campaign". Los Angeles Times.
  38. ↑ "Rocha Moya no tiene visa para viajar a EU, le fue revocada desde el año pasado: Los Angeles Times". LatinUS (in Spanish). 27 April 2026. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  39. ↑ "Executive Order: Designating Cartels And Other Organizations As Foreign Terrorist Organizations And Specially Designated Global Terrorists". The White House. 20 January 2025. Retrieved 1 May 2026.
  40. ↑ Linthicum, Kate (29 April 2026). "Mexico's dilemma: Extradite officials to U.S. or risk angering Trump". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 1 May 2026.
  41. ↑ Sánchez Jiménez, Arturo; Castillo, Gustavo (29 April 2026). "SRE recibe solicitud para extradición de Rocha Moya; señala falta de pruebas de EU". La Jornada (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  42. ↑ Nicas, Jack; Abi-Habib, Maria; Rodríguez Mega, Emiliano (29 April 2026). "U.S. Indicts Mexican Governor and 9 Others in Scheme to Aid Sinaloa Drug Cartel". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 May 2026.
  43. ↑ Nicas, Jack (29 April 2026). "EE. UU. imputa al gobernador de Sinaloa de apoyar al narcotráfico". The New York Times (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 May 2026.
  44. ↑ Galván, Guadalupe; Dina, Eduardo (30 April 2026). "Acusa EU a Rocha y 9 funcionarios por tráfico de drogas". El Universal (in Spanish). New York. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  45. ↑ Serrano, Sofía (30 April 2026). "Dos funcionarios de Sinaloa señalados por EU suenan en Morena para elecciones 2027". sdpnoticias (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  46. ↑ "Mexican governor, other officials charged with conspiring with Sinaloa Cartel to smuggle drugs into U.S." NBC News. 30 April 2026. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  47. ↑ "US charges Sinaloa governor over alleged cartel ties, marking new front in drug war". ABC News. 30 April 2026. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  48. ↑ "Rocha Moya rechaza acusación de narco; dice que es un ataque contra la 4T". Arisetgui Noticias (in Spanish). 29 April 2026. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  49. ↑ Rodríguez García, Arturo (30 April 2026). "No hay pruebas y se violó confidencialidad: Morena ante caso de Rubén Rocha Moya". Proceso (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  50. ↑ "Morena en el Senado exige pruebas tras petición de EU para extraditar a Rocha e Inzunza". El Sol de México (in Spanish). 30 April 2026. Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  51. ↑ Ramos López, José Alfredo (30 April 2026). "¿Por qué EU no requiere 'Pruebas contundentes' para pedir extradición de Rocha?". Zócalo (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  52. ↑ Dina, Eduardo; Corona, Salvador (30 April 2026). "Sheinbaum pide pruebas claras en caso Rubén Rocha; si no, es político, dice". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 30 April 2026.
  53. ↑ "¿Por qué la FGR rechazó la solicitud de extradición contra Rocha Moya? Las fallas que detectó". El Financiero (in Spanish). 1 May 2026. Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  54. ↑ Vizcarra, Marcos; Marcial Pérez, David (2 May 2026). "Rocha Moya deja temporalmente la gubernatura de Sinaloa para permitir que la Fiscalía General lo investigue". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  55. ↑ Contreras, Jorge (2 May 2026). "Rubén Rocha Moya solicita licencia como gobernador de Sinaloa". infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 May 2026.
  56. ↑ "UIF pide congelamiento de cuentas de Rocha Moya e hijos, Inzunza y otros implicados: Emeequis". Proceso (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 May 2026.
  57. ↑ Mercado, Sharon (21 August 2026). "Gobernadores de Morena le piden "madurez" a Rocha Moya; "la política es un ejercicio de congruencia", aseguran". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 21 August 2026.
  58. ↑ "Un día después de reaparecer, Rocha Moya pide licencia indefinida como gobernador de Sinaloa". Proceso (in Spanish). 22 August 2026.
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