Demonstrators in Mexico City. Alejandro Cegarra/Bloomberg via Getty Images
More than 100,000 people gathered in Mexico City on Sunday to protest an overhaul of the National Electoral Institute, which oversees Mexico’s elections.
Last week, Mexican lawmakers, with the backing of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, agreed to make changes to the agency, cutting its budget and staff and weakening its power to punish those violating electoral law. One-party federal rule ended in Mexico in 2000, and since then, according to Portal, the National Electoral Institution has “played an important role in the transition to multiparty democracy.”
Opponents of the overhaul say it threatens democracy, violates the constitution and weakens the agency’s independence. The next election is in 2024 and López Obrador has denied accusations that he wants to use these changes to remain in power. The overhaul is a cost-cutting measure, he said, and the $150 million saved annually could be used for healthcare, education and infrastructure.
Organizers say between 100,000 and 500,000 protesters were in Mexico City on Sunday, and tens of thousands others took part in demonstrations in more than 100 other cities. One of those organizers, opposition politician Fernando Belaunzaran, told Portal that the weakening of the National Electoral Institute increases the risk of disputes in the 2024 election. As the presidents serve six-year terms, López Obrador’s successor will be elected next year.
“Usually presidents try to make their succession governable and stable, but the president creates uncertainty,” Belaunzaran said. “He’s playing with fire.”
Pedro Miguel, a journalist with the leftist newspaper La Jornada, sees things differently. He told the New York Times that the National Electoral Institute had “too much power, perverse power,” and criticized the agency for paying bonuses to its members after they resigned. “This is a march in defense of this bonus and these miserable salaries,” added Miguel.
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