Mexican senate gives general approval to sweeping changes to judiciary

Mexico’s senate has given general approval to sweeping judicial changes in which judges will be elected by popular vote, a profound transformation that critics fear could threaten the rule of law and damage the economy.

The senate will now debate reservations raised by lawmakers before giving final approval to the overhaul proposed by the outgoing president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and which passed the lower house last week. Senators voted 86 to 41 in favour of the general approval.

Miguel Ángel Yunes, of the opposition PAN, on Tuesday broke party ranks to say he would favour the changes, in effect giving the ruling Morena party and its allies the two-thirds majority needed to pass the constitutional reform.

Mexico’s major trading partners, the US and Canada, have said the overhaul could undermine the USMCA trade pact and negatively affect investment.

The proposal has also spooked markets, with Mexico’s peso weakening by 17% since the 2 June elections that Morena won by a landslide.

As senators discussed the changes on Tuesday, demonstrators broke into the Senate building waving Mexican flags and crying “traitors”, forcing the session to be paused.

Opposition lawmakers accused the ruling bloc of deploying underhand tactics to secure the necessary votes, alleging that a senator had been detained in an attempt to stop him voting while others had been put under pressure or offered bribes. Morena denied the allegations.

López Obrador and the president-elect, Claudia Sheinbaum, have vigorously defended the overhaul as vital to maintaining the integrity of Mexico’s judiciary and ensuring it serves the people rather than criminal interests. Critics, though, worry that it is an alarming concentration of power by Morena.

The backbone of the overhaul, which the lower house approved last week, calls for the election by popular vote of more than 6,500 judges and magistrates, including members of the supreme court.

It also reduces the number of supreme court judges to nine from 11, cuts back the length of their terms to 12 years, abolishes a minimum age requirement of 35, and halves necessary work experience to five years.

Sheinbaum, who takes office on 2 October will be tasked with managing the fallout of the overhaul, which risks dominating the first months of her term.