Photo: Pixabay

By KELIN DILLON

On Sunday, Sep. 15 – just one day before Mexico’s Independence Day – Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s (AMLO) contentious judicial reform went into effect after the constitutional changes were published in the Official Gazette of the Federation.

The controversial reform passed through the Mexican Chamber of Deputies and Senate last week and will now see all of Mexico’s federal judges and magistrates, including those sitting on the Supreme Court, elected by popular vote.

While López Obrador and his National Regeneration Movement (Morena) have argued that the constitutional changes are necessary to fix Mexico’s corrupt judicial branch, critics of the reform have pushed back, saying that the popular election of judges undermines Mexico’s judicial autonomy.

The judicial reform could also harm international investor confidence in Mexico and has reportedly caused the suspension of $35 billion in U.S. investment into Mexico over the controversial legislation – not to mention temporarily thrusting the nation’s relationship with the U.S. Embassy in Mexico into murky territory.

Mexico’s first round of sweeping judicial elections is expected to begin in June 2025 after AMLO’s successor, Claudia Sheinbaum, has taken office.