Mexico’s Senate approves judicial overhaul | WORLD
Logo
Sound journalism, grounded in facts and Biblical truth | Donate

Mexico’s Senate approves judicial overhaul


Protesters interrupt a Senate session in which lawmakers were debating the government's proposed judicial reform, which would make judges stand for election, in Mexico City, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. The Associated Press/Photo by Felix Marquez

Mexico’s Senate approves judicial overhaul

Senators on Wednesday morning voted 86 to 41 to pass sweeping legislation that aims to change how Mexico installs new judges. Mexico’s lower house of Congress last week approved the plan amid widespread protests in the capital that drove lawmakers to relocate to a sports facility for the vote. Protesters interrupted the Senate session Tuesday when hundreds of people broke into the Senate building. The legislation must be ratified by the legislatures of at least 17 of Mexico’s 32 states before it can take effect.

What would the legislation do? The plan, first proposed by outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, would make nearly all of the country’s more than 7,000 judges and magistrates elected by popular vote instead of appointment. The proposal would also reduce the number of Supreme Court judges from 11 to nine, shorten their term limits by three years, and make Supreme Court judges elected positions. Incoming president Claudia Sheinbaum on Wednesday congratulated senators for passing the legislation. Meanwhile, international leaders have criticized the changes and American lawmakers have called the overhaul a risk to Mexico’s democracy.

Dig deeper: Read my earlier report in The Sift about the proposal.


Lauren Canterberry

Lauren Canterberry is a reporter for WORLD. She graduated from the World Journalism Institute and the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism, both in 2017. She worked as a local reporter in Texas and now lives in Georgia with her husband.


An actual newsletter worth subscribing to instead of just a collection of links. —Adam

Sign up to receive The Sift email newsletter each weekday morning for the latest headlines from WORLD’s breaking news team.
COMMENT BELOW

Please wait while we load the latest comments...

Comments