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By KELIN DILLON

On Wednesday, Nov. 15, the Mexican Senate officially approved the resignation of Supreme Court Justice of the Nation (SCJN) Minister Arturo Zaldívar from his position in Mexico’s highest court, just one year before Zaldívar’s 15-year term was set to conclude.

Zaldívar’s resignation was approved with 63 votes in favor, mainly from the in-power National Regeneration Movement (Morena) and its allies, and 43 votes against.

While opposition senators requested that Zaldívar explain the intent behind his resignation to the legislative body while arguing that the one-time SCJN president had no “serious cause” to leave his position as established by Article 98 of the Mexican Constitution, Morena’s senators ultimately voted the opposition’s initiative down.

For her part, former SCJN minister and current Senator Olga Sánchez Cordero said that no public official could be forced to stay in a position against their will and led Tuesday’s vote in approval of Zaldívar’s resignation in the Senate Justice Commission.

Zaldívar is now set to join the team of Morena presidential candidate Claudia Sheinbaum as she vies for the post of federal executive in Mexico’s 2024 elections, though he publicly noted he will not seek public office following his resignation.