Revive proposal for judges to be elected by direct citizen vote

After considering that the powers of Congress were invaded and warning that “something is wrong” in the Judiciary, the Morena coordinator in the Chamber of Deputies, Ignacio Mier Velazco, announced that his parliamentary group will promote a reform initiative so that the ministers of the SCJN are elected by popular vote.

The proposal supports what was declared by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who said that he would send an initiative to reform the Judiciary after the Supreme Court of the Nation invalidated the first part of “plan B” for electoral reform due to violations of the process legislative.

From the Senate of the Republic, accompanied by deputies from Morena and PT, within the framework of the Permanent Commission, the Morenista deputy rejected that the Chamber of Deputies violated due legislative process during the first part of the so-called “plan B” of the reform electoral and insisted that the SCJN violated the sovereignty of the Legislative power; however, he clarified that they will abide by the sentence because it is the last instance.

Thus, the also president of the Political Coordination Board considered that it is necessary for the ministers to be elected democratically, as President Andrés Manuel López Obrador proposed this morning.

“I believe that the Judiciary, for there to be full division of powers, and not the power of judges, must be elected by the people of Mexico.”

“They (the ministers) applied, according to their criteria, their interpretation, the law. We do not share it, but we abide by it, because we do respect the division of powers and that it is necessary to improve, reflect on the entire society in the next electoral process and that the procedure, the mechanism that Mexicans endow themselves with to elect members of the judiciary,” he added.

Meetings in the Senate

Later, after meeting with the president of the party, Mario Delgado, as well as some deputies, to seek to reinforce support in those of Coahuila and the States of Mexico in view of the upcoming gubernatorial elections, Mier Velazco indicated that there was also talk of the reform of the Judiciary to include the issue on the agenda of the movement.

“We are going to incorporate it, it is already part of our agenda, a review (of the Judiciary) so that all these distortions are avoided and that the people be sovereign as it was before, of the Constitution of 57, that they be elected by of the people, the ministers of the Court and not at the suggestion of one of the powers that was democratically elected”, he added.

Despite this reform, he assured that it is not intended to fully renew the SCJN plenary, but rather, it is “improvement” of the Judiciary and rescue it from what he also described as a waste of resources.

“They have 40 benefits above those of the people (…) Only in salaries they receive more than 7 million pesos a year,” he added.

The National President of Morena, Mario Delgado, maintained that the meeting with deputies from his party had the purpose of instructing the legislators “who are going to help us in Coahuila and in the State of Mexico, to ensure that there is no vote buying, that They are after the raccoons, they are going to hunt raccoons and above all they are going to touch the conscience of the people so that the PRI does not celebrate its 100th anniversary in either of these two states.”

They endorse the re-election of electoral and anti-corruption prosecutor in the CDMX Congress

The Congress of Mexico City endorsed reforms to articles 42 and 99 and added article 42 Bis, of the Organic Law of the Attorney General’s Office of Justice of Mexico City, which specifies that electoral and anti-corruption prosecutors may be reelected .

Article 42 indicated that the Attorney General may be re-elected by the local Congress for a period equal to the one he was elected (four years). With the modifications, prosecutors in electoral crimes and anti-corruption can now also be re-elected.

It is worth mentioning that the capital’s anti-corruption prosecutor is Rafael Chong, who was elected less than a week ago and that previously the president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, proposed him to occupy the Consumer Defense Attorney’s Office and the Federal Conciliation Center, before the Congress of the Union, without success. While Alma Elena de León has held the electoral prosecutor’s office since 2020.

With the modifications, the prosecutors who wish to be re-elected will have to request it in writing to the Judicial Council. Otherwise, a call will be issued.

If re-election is requested, the prosecutor(s) will submit to interviews with the Council who will send their opinion to the head of government so that, in turn, she can send it to the local Congress for a vote. In case of not reaching two thirds of the plenary session, the Judicial Council will be asked to issue a call to elect external persons. (Drafting)

maritza.perez@eleconomista.mx