Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaumattacked the Supreme Court on Tuesday, saying it would overstep its bounds if it votes to overturn parts of an ambitious judicial overhaul pushed through by her predecessor, former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The reform would require all judges – even those in the high court – to be elected by popular vote, which critics say will rob the judicial system of its independence.
The looming fight is nothing short of a constitutional crisis, and the justices are on their back foot. Eight of them already announced their intentions to resign rather than stand for elections in June. Meanwhile, the ruling Morena party’s coalition supermajorities in Congress allowed it to pass an amendment last week barring judicial challenges to constitutional changes – in other words, stripping the Supreme Court of its ability to check the executive or legislative branches. This could mean that whatever decision the court reaches may be moot.
A compromise? One justice, Juan Luis González Alcántara, is proposing a compromise that would see only the top courts stand for election, while lower justices remain appointed. He’ll need to win over his fellow justices, and we are watching whether avoiding a major crisis just one month into her presidency is enough of an incentive for Sheinbaum to take the deal.