TEPJF acquits Adán Augusto López of anticipated acts of pre-campaign or campaign

By unanimous vote of the magistrates, the Superior Chamber of the Electoral Tribunal of the Judicial Power of the Federation (TEPJF) declared non-existent the violation of anticipated pre-campaign and campaign acts attributable to the Secretary of the Interior, Adam Augusto Lopez Hernandezfor having given a conference on July 16 of last year in Guadalajara.

However, although the Court noted that there were not enough elements to conclude that an electoral violation was proven, it indicated that the reiteration of these conducts could demonstrate an undue positioning of a pre-candidacy or candidacy.

The federal deputy of Citizen movement (MC), Jorge Álvarez Máynez, denounced the Secretary of the Interior and Morena for an alleged meeting with businessmen held on July 15 and for a conference a day later at the event called Expo Guadalajara, Jalisco. The complainant argued the placement of billboards with the phrase: #AdánVa as facts and acts of a systematic positioning strategy for the head of Segob with a view to next year’s presidential elections. Álvarez considered that these are anticipated pre-campaign and campaign acts, as well as the dissemination of personalized government propaganda.

Initially the Specialized Regional Chamber of the TEPJF determined, among other issues, the non-existence of the offense consisting of carrying out pre-campaign and campaign eventsbecause the acts were outside the federal electoral process.

Said Chamber considered that there was no express or unequivocal call to vote for Augusto López in the next federal electoral process, nor were functional equivalents updated, since the public servant positioned a political movement of which he is a part and not an electoral platform, nor aspirations individual policies.

In that framework, the Superior Chamber of the Electoral Tribunalin a face-to-face public session, at the proposal of magistrate Felipe de la Mata Pizaña, confirmed the controversial decision, since the Specialized Chamber analyzed the full content of the denounced facts and, based on this, concluded that the expressions were issued in attention to the content and development of the denounced event.

The Superior Chamber considered that the expressions do not express personal electoral aspirations of the Secretary of the Interior, nor do they seek personal support for any candidacy, electoral platform, or for or against any political party in the face of the federal electoral process.

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