This article analyzes the quality of democracy in the state of Sinaloa. The objective is to provide an overview of the current status of the democratic dimensions in the state, and to analyze the performance of some democratic institutions and political actors. It detects the illiberal structures and practices that persist and permeate life in Sinaloa in political competition, electoral integrity, political and economic elites, and organized crime. The analysis and evidence presented show an unbalanced evolution among dimensions of democracy, along with a complex juxtaposition of democratic institutional and political changes. There is a permanence, and to some extent, entrenchment, of illiberal practices and structures that allow democratic advances only a limited influence, and that halt or decelerate democratic consolidation in the state.