It's only about about 9 years for California and that's being charitable with regard to all but three, principal settlements.
1821 - Mexico declares independence from Spain. Spanish garrisons in California decommissioned (no money for troops in the boondocks) and rule relegated to Catholic Church through a string of missions.
1836 - Mexico City begins to secularize missions and begins to establish rule of civil law through the presence of Mexican troops and on-site governors. Secularization completed by 1839.
1842- Last Mexican governor dispatched to California. Home rule revolt, not involving non-Hispanic, white Europeans, or illegal, US immigrants, starts upon arrival and governor forced to flee in 1845. At that time California had about 100K natives, 9K Mexicans and 2K illegal immigrants from the US.
1845 - US begins to explore Alta California with both troops and warships.
1846 - Bear Flag revolt and war between Mexico and US.
1847 - Cahuenga Capitulation in January 1847
The Estados Unidos Mexicanos essentially had little or no control over California. the Catholic Church yes. The United Mexican States, no.
After some reasearch, my surmise is that Arizona and New Mexico were no different. There are simply fewer, independent, historical accounts to burst the Mexican myth of benign, close stewardship in those two states. Texas, of course, is another matter.
Thanks for the history of California. Essentially, the history is a bit different in California, AZ and NM (which were one province at the time) and Texas. But in all three cases, the Mexican govt had no effective control after 1821.
Recollection seems to bring to mind that New Mexico never enjoyed a very effective government, and had been completely abandoned (by its government, not its population) by 1843 ('44?), but that some semblence, albeit a feeble one, of a government was retained in Arizona.
Correct me where I'm wrong.