Nevada assemblymember playing role in Mexico City summit

Nevada Assemblymember Cecelia González, left, speaks Tuesday during a news conference in Mexico City to announce a binational summit in September featuring state-level representatives and Mexican officials. Photo by: Courtesy of NReal Media Strategies

Editor's note: Este artículo está traducido al español.

Nevada Assemblymember Cecelia González, D-Las Vegas, was in Mexico City this week to promote a new binational summit in September featuring state-level representatives and Mexican officials.

“The countries are at a crossroads,” González told the Sun. “The summit isn’t just a response to anti-Mexican rhetoric. The event is going to highlight real solutions rooted in mutual respect, shared prosperity and cross-border relations.”

The United States’ relationship with Mexico has been fraught under President Donald Trump. Along with the threat of more tariffs, Mexico has always been at the forefront of Trump’s mass deportation agenda.

But González believes local and state lawmakers can play a role in preserving the longtime relationship. The summit will be in Mexico City over three days.

“States and cities are on the front lines,” she said at the event hosted by the Mexican-American Policy Alliance (MAPA). “We are the ones deciding whether someone can get a driver’s license, see a doctor, attend school or access justice.”

González said the people she talked to want to figure out a way to work together, which she said is how the summit came to be. In a statement prior to the event, MAPA President Arturo Carmona said the press conference marks the beginning of “a unified policy vision to expand opportunity and defend dignity across borders.”

“Despite economic headwinds and negative rhetoric, our communities remain deeply connected by shared culture, values and purpose,” Carmona said.

State representatives from California, New Mexico and Arizona were also in attendance with González.

Las Vegas is feeling the heat from increased tensions. Volaris, Mexico’s most popular airline, saw a 17.8% drop in passengers going through Harry Reid International Airport over the first five months of the year compared with 2024. Aeromexico experienced a similar drop-off.

González said she didn’t speak directly to anyone about impacts on tourism but noted that the countries also rely on each other for imported goods.

People believe “the federal government is speaking for everyone, and that’s not true,” the assemblymember said. “Local electeds like myself … are stepping up to the plate and saying, ‘Actually, we’re going to not be part of this anti-immigrant rhetoric.’ ”

But managing the relationship between the U.S. and any country has largely been left to the federal government, and there are legal limits as to what a state representative can and cannot do.

So, during her Mexico City press conference, González highlighted legislation from the Nevada Latino Legislative Caucus’ members focused on immigrant communities from Mexico and beyond.

That included now-passed bills fast-tracking limited licenses for physicians trained overseas, guaranteeing translation at hospitals and allowing parents to designate a caregiver more easily for their children if they’re deported or detained.

“As legislators, we also know that our work shapes binational relationships,” González said. “We have the power to invest in cross-border infrastructure, expand workforce development pipelines for binational industries and create incentives for U.S.-Mexico business partnerships.”

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