Ex-El Chapo lawyer to win in Mexico's first judicial election

During the country’s first judicial election, a defense lawyer known for representing Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán appears to have gathered enough votes to serve as a local-level criminal court judge. Officials on Tuesday released the tallies for the June 1st election, showing Silvia Delgado Garcia won a criminal judge position in the Mexican border town of Juárez, the BBC reported. Her win still needs to be officially confirmed.

Why does this matter? Many viewed Delgado Garcia’s candidacy as controversial given her previous work defending a now-convicted drug lord, the Associated Press reported. She has repeatedly denied any conflict of interest from her involvement in the case, noting that El Chapo was legally entitled to counsel and she was only doing her job. Guzmán is serving a life sentence at a U.S. federal prison in Colorado after his 2019 drug trafficking conviction. Delgado hoped to be remembered for her honest lifestyle and dedication to her clients she said in a May interview with Reuters before the election.

The election also marks the first time Mexican citizens have directly voted to elect judges at all levels of the judiciary. The governing Morena party amended the Mexican constitution last year to allow voters to choose thousands of other judicial positions, including the country’s Supreme Court. The amendment also reduced the highest court from 11 justices to nine, triggering a majority of the country’s Supreme Court justices to resign in October.

About 13% of voters turned out to vote earlier this month. President Claudia Sheinbaum acknowledged voter turnout but insisted the election went well. Officials will look to make improvements before the next round of judicial elections in 2027, she said. 

Dig deeper: Read Lauren Canterberry’s previous report on the Mexico Senate approving a judiciary system overhaul.