Mexico’s Approach to Branding City and State Administrations
Municipal and state governments in Mexico often have logos representing entire elected administrations rather than just one politician.
When walking around cities in Mexico, I’ve noticed something that I haven’t seen anywhere else in the world: Municipal and state governments have logos representing a specific elected administration—without the name of a person or political party. They include start and end years, and often a slogan as well.
You see them everywhere: on buildings, posters, park benches, light poles, sidewalks, and more!
Notice how these are not:
Generic logos or seals representing the government as a whole for an indefinite period of time
Brands representing a specific politician, such as a mayor or governor
Both of those are common and I’ve seen them in plenty of other countries—but Mexico is the only country where I can recall having seen logos for specific elected administrations but without the name of a politician.
I think the lack of a specific politician’s name helps create a sense that governing is something we do together, which is of course the reality. I’m not a big fan of creating huge cults of personality surrounding one single politician.
The use of start and end years is very interesting. To me it seems to do a few things:
Sense of urgency: It creates a sense of having a limited time to get things done.
Reminder of democracy: It reminds people that this specific administration governs for a particular period of time thanks to winning an election—and puts a clear end date on the current administration by stating when the next election is.
Legacy: It allows future generations to see what was accomplished at specific points in the past.
Regarding that last point: While visiting the state of Durango, I was able to find a succession of logos for 6-year state administrations ranging from 2004 to 2028!
Do these logos actually make a difference in how these governments function or how voters perceive them? I have no idea. I just think it’s interesting!
Have you seen anything like this in another country? What do you think of these logos? Would you like to see them where you live? Let me know in the comments!
