In the last days of the legislature’s current ordinary session, Congress passed two controversial legal reforms. First, a reform to the Amparo Law will limit the effects of judgements in an amparo proceeding (judicial appeal for constitutional protection) to the claimant in the litigation. This will deprive others in similar situations to the claimant from the benefits of a ruling. Opposition members consider the reform to have weakened access to justice and see it as part of a strategy to keep federal courts from pausing the President’s priority infrastructure projects, which have been challenged as unconstitutional. Second, a reform to the Amnesty Law will empower the president to directly grant amnesty in certain cases, bypassing the procedure established in the law that ordinarily includes a judicial decision.  

Opposition in Congress has vowed to challenge these reforms before the Supreme Court.  

Sources: CNN, Chamber of Deputies, El Pais  

On 5 February, President López Obrador presented 18 constitutional and two legal reform proposals encompassing social issues such as pensions, welfare programs, and minimum wage, and those focusing on institutional reforms. The latter propose changes within the judicial and electoral systems, the restructuring and streamlining of autonomous institutions and the role of the National Guard. Some controversial proposals include the appointment of members of the National Electoral Institute (INE), the Electoral Tribunal and justices of the Supreme Court through popular vote, the reduction in the number of congress members, and a new electoral reform that aims to reduce costs and the expenditure of political parties, among other issues.  

Critics and opposition have expressed concern about their potential impact on the impartiality and independence of certain institutions, and on ensuring a level playing field for the 2 June elections. Though some of the reforms currently lack sufficient support to pass in Congress, at least prior to the elections, their debate in the following weeks and months may shape the electoral race. 

Sources: Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, El País, Gobierno de Mexico, Financial Times, DW 

Throughout January and February, there has been a significant increase in political violence in Mexico, raising concerns about the impact of violence on the electoral processes underway, as the 2 June elections approach. Particularly troubling have been the killings of aspiring candidates for local offices. According to Data Cívica, the number of victims of political violence surged by 235.7 per cent from 2018 to 2023. Integralia has reported 32 victims in 2024, including aspiring candidates (eight, since the electoral process started) and current and former public officials killed. As the campaign season kicks off on 1 March, concerns are mounting over the potential rise in political violence, as criminal organizations seek to influence results. 

Sources: El Pais, Insight Crime, Aristegi Noticias, Integralia

Concerns over the safety of journalists and press freedom in Mexico increased following reports of data leaks and the disclosure of a journalist's personal phone number during a presidential daily press briefing. 

Experts and organizations, such as the Committee to Protect Journalists, called on the government to ensure compliance with privacy laws while handling personal information, after a government database of over 300 journalists who had applied for press credentials was leaked, including their personal identification numbers and addresses. 

Journalists doubled down on this demand after the executive’s accusations of media bias and unprofessional behaviour for publishing allegations regarding irregular campaign financing against people close to him without evidence, in exchanges that were criticized by media professionals as antagonizing and harmful in a country where journalists are victims of reprisals and violent attacks. 

Sources: The New York Times, Animal Politico, CNN, Reuters, Axios, Associated Press, CPJ

In December, Reyes Rodríguez Mondragón resigned as President of the Federal Judiciary’s Electoral Tribunal (TEPJF, Tribunal Electoral del Poder Judicial de la Federación), a significant development just six months before the country's largest electoral process (in terms of number of offices for election). After the tenure of two of its seven magistrates expired and due to an impasse in the Senate that has prevented the designation of replacements, the TEPJF’s High Chamber has been functioning with only five members since November. Of these, three magistrates expressed their loss of trust in the leadership of former President Rodríguez Mondragón and publicly called on him to resign. Reports indicate that the three magistrates were unhappy with how the Tribunal’s internal administration was being handled. Allegations in the media of external political pressures were denied by the former President, Justice Mónica Soto Fregoso was subsequently voted in as the new president of the Tribunal and started her tenure in January 2024.

Experts had expressed their concern, calling on the three magistrates to privilege the TEPJF’s stability. Some stressed that this situation seriously impacts public trust in the electoral justice system, particularly given the opacity of the allegations made against the former President.

Sources: El Pais (1), Infobae, El Pais (2), Forbes Mexico, El Universal

On 14 December, Mexico's President López Obrador appointed Lenia Batres Guadarrama, as a new justice of the Supreme Court (SCJN), to fill the vacancy left by Arturo Zaldivar, who resigned last November. Pursuant to Article 96 of the Constitution, President López Obrador made the appointment after the Senate twice rejected the shortlist of nominees he proposed (two shortlists were proposed in total), which included Batres Guadarrama and others deemed close allies of the President. Concerns have been raised about her impartiality due to her strong connections with the President and the ruling party. She has previously served in López Obrador’s presidential and mayoral administrations. This marks the fifth justice appointment since the current administration came into power in 2018, but it is the first direct appointment by the president. López Obrador has expressed his intention to amend the constitution to allow citizens to elect Supreme Court justices and other judges directly.

Sources: Reuters, El Pais, CNN

On 18 October, the Mexican Congress approved a modification to Article 224 of the Organic Law of the Federal Judicial Power (PJF) concerning trust funds. The revision significantly reduces the budget available to the PJF, eliminating 13 of 14 trust funds and banning the creation of new ones. The reform was approved by the Senate on 24 October, and President López Obrador enacted it on 28 October.  

This action impacts Mexico’s Supreme Court, the Federal Judicial Oversight Body, and the Federal Electoral Tribunal, and is a part of President López Obrador's wider campaign against corruption and government overspending. The resources from the dissolved trust funds are expected to be redirected to the Federal Treasury, supporting social programs pursuant to the National Development Plan. However, the budget cuts have ignited debate and triggered protests due to concerns that they may compromise the independence of the judiciary and impact the rights of judicial employees. Despite President López Obrador's assurances that lower-ranking court workers will not be impacted by these changes, members of the judiciary and critics consider such workers will be affected the most. Several protests by employees of the PJF resulted in the temporary suspension of some judicial work and services. At the same time, criticism about the potential weakening of the judiciary, through budget cuts, persists. Critics argue that the reform could disrupt the balance of power, undermining the judiciary's ability to act as a check on executive power. 

Sources: Cámara de Diputados, El País (1), Infobae, Senado de la República, El País (2), Stanford Law School, Expansión Politica