Fight in the Mexican Senate: Noroña (Morena) and Moreno (PRI) clash during session after debate on U.S. military intervention.
Joana Campos
The Mexican Senate, intended as a stronghold of reason and political debate, turned into a wrestling ring on August 27, 2025.
Senators Gerardo Fernández Noroña, leader of the ruling Morena party, and Alejandro Moreno, president of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), engaged in a physical brawl that has shocked public opinion and sparked widespread criticism.
Mexican senators come to blows after debate on the United States.
The altercation, which erupted following a debate over alleged opposition calls for a U.S. military intervention in Mexico, was described as “regrettable” by President Claudia Sheinbaum.
“Do you not find yesterday’s attitude from the PRI president and his deputies very authoritarian? Don’t forget they are the PRIAN,” she said, seemingly overlooking the history of scuffles and heated exchanges in Congress since Morena’s emergence.
However, her criticism appeared biased as she singled out Alejandro Moreno, accusing him of starting the scuffle and embodying “enormous authoritarianism” by contradicting the freedom values the PRI claims to uphold.
Sheinbaum avoided addressing Fernández Noroña, her political ally, with the same intensity, drawing criticism for apparent double standards.
Is this a reflection of the impartiality expected from a head of state?
The confrontation stemmed from a session discussing accusations related to drug trafficking and alleged opposition stances, led by the PRI and PAN, suggesting a need for U.S. military intervention to combat Mexican cartels.
Fernández Noroña and Moreno exchanged verbal accusations that quickly escalated.
Moreno, known for his combative rhetoric, and Noroña, a senator with a history of public confrontations, failed to hold back.Widely circulated videos on social media captured the moment the senators engaged in a physical fight, with shoving and punches leaving onlookers stunned.
The scandal not only damaged the Senate’s image but also left collateral victims. Emiliano González, a Senate worker, was “injured” while trying to record the incident with a 360° camera. Some have reported additional details:
González was pushed and struck, requiring «medical attention».
Alejandro Moreno explains the reason behind the Senate brawl:
Moreno:
With respect, we waited for the national anthem to be sung, and then I asked him to give me an explanation of what was happening. As always, this brute, this thug, pushed me, and as I told you, he’s a small man, brother, that’s why we exposed him for the madman he is, a coward who ran away.
That talk about “the first one who comes here,” coward, to avoid speaking, he’s a coward. I want to start with what I was going to share from the Senate floor. Regardless of the parliamentary debate, regardless of the heat of the debate, you cannot treat a fellow legislator with such disrespect.
Because that’s where this coward shows his true colors, yelling at a woman, telling her to come here so he can “beat the hell out of that bastard,” and we’ll teach him that women—whether legislators of the Republic or any women—are to be respected. If he wasn’t taught that, here in the Senate we’ll educate him, because he’s a coward.
I want to thank the media, and I’ll be brief in delivering the concise message we intended to give from the Senate floor. It’s the statement our parliamentary group was going to read from the Senate floor, first to be fully recorded in the debate journal, and second, thank you for your patience and time, to the international community, Mexicans, and honorable Assembly: today we are living in the most dangerous moment.
The reality is that the fight did not occur in a vacuum; Mexico is experiencing a period of intense political tension.On the other hand, Moreno’s accusations against Morena, alleging ties to organized crime, and criticisms of Noroña’s lavish lifestyle—contradicting the austerity his party promotes—have fueled the confrontation.
Noroña also commented on the issue:
Noroña:
Many of you, members of the media, have covered the Legislative Branch for a long time. There has never been a precedent of this severity. On Friday, we will convene a session of the Permanent Commission at nine-thirty to address this extremely serious issue, which cannot be overlooked under any circumstances.
Emiliano González and I will file complaints for the injuries and property damage, in Emiliano’s case, to his photographic equipment. Of course, once the complaints are filed, this matter cannot be left unresolved, and we will request the removal of parliamentary immunity for the legislators who physically assaulted us.
The backdrop to the altercation cannot be ignored: pressure from the United States. Reports indicate that President Donald Trump has pushed for military intervention in Mexico to combat cartels, a proposal Sheinbaum has firmly rejected, stating, “Mexico is to be respected.”
While this stance is resolute, it contrasts with the government’s inability to control internal violence, allowing the opposition to leverage security as a political weapon.
The Senate brawl reflects how international tensions intertwine with domestic polarization, where personal issues and a lack of civility become a ticking time bomb.
It is ironic that, in a country where cartel violence claims lives daily, senators choose to emulate it in the chamber meant to be a beacon of civility.
Fernández Noroña and Moreno, in their pathetic display of testosterone, have not only shamed their parties but also confirmed a widespread fear: that Mexican politics is closer to a spectacle than a solution.
As Sheinbaum washes her hands with a “regrettable” that sounds scripted, the nation watches with disillusionment as its leaders prioritize fists over ideas.
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