

One might think that the technical and administrative nuts and bolts of a judicial reform wouldn't spark much popular interest. But the final month in office of Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador, known as "AMLO," promises to be fraught with the cascading implications of this reform project, which calls for judges and magistrates to be elected by popular vote. Presented on February 5, it will be one of the first major subjects that MPs and senators of the newly elected Parliament will tackle when they take up their post on Sunday, September 1.
The reform's fallout include a plummeting Mexican peso, a court system paralyzed by strikes and a diplomatic row with the US. On August 22, the American ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar, issued a statement in which he recalled his past as a prosecutor before expressing his concerns: "Based on my lifelong experience supporting the rule of law, I believe that the direct election of judges represents a major risk to the functioning of Mexico’s democracy." He added that "[the debate surrounding this reform] threatens the historic trade relationship we have built, which relies on investors’ confidence in Mexico’s legal framework."
Financial markets were swift to react. The Mexican peso's good 2023 run ended abruptly, with the currency losing 16% of its value since the June 2 general elections. The Mexican president, who is particularly sensitive to meddling, decided to "pause" relations with the ambassador following his comments. The head of state later clarified that this announcement concerned only the diplomat and not relations between the two countries. But the US. State Department, through Brian A. Nichols, assistant secretary for Western hemisphere, took exception to this decision, publicly supporting the ambassador while reiterating his respect for Mexico's sovereignty.
With its qualified two-thirds majority in the Chamber of Deputies from Sunday, Morena (the party of "AMLO" and president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, who will take office on October 1) and its allies are guaranteed to pass this reform in the first instance. In the Senate, they are just one vote short of that same qualified majority and final endorsement. "I know it's going to be difficult, but I'm still hopeful that this reform won't pass. They can't ignore our movement," said Graciela Malja Aguirre, a magistrate who has been participating in the picket line that has brought the federal court to a standstill since August 19.
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