Mexico Senate Approves Constitutional Reform

Mexico’s Senate has passed controversial judicial reforms that will significantly change how judges are selected in the country.

This content originally appeared in NPR.

The key change is that federal judges will now be elected by popular vote instead of being appointed. These reforms, backed by outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, aim to combat corruption in the judiciary. However, the changes have sparked protests from judges and judicial staff, who have been on strike since August 19th. Supporters argue the reforms will make judges more accountable to the people rather than to business interests or organized crime, while critics worry they may politicize the courts and undermine judicial independence, which has been developing since the 1990s.

Notably, Mexico previously elected judges under its 1857 Constitution but abandoned this system in 1917, considering it prone to corruption. Currently, Bolivia is the only major democracy that elects federal judges by popular vote, a system implemented in 2009. Despite attempts to block them, including protests and court injunctions, the reforms passed, representing a significant shift in Mexico’s judicial system.

This development has become one of the country’s biggest constitutional debates in recent years, and the long-term impact on Mexico’s judiciary and its independence remains to be seen, with proponents and critics strongly divided on the potential outcomes.

Read the original article over at NPR.