Coparmex raises its voice against the legislative overrepresentation of Morena

MEXICO CITY.— In a forceful and firm manner, the national leadership of Coparmex and renowned jurists asked the National Electoral Institute (INE) and magistrates of the superior chamber of the Federal Electoral Tribunal to apply the “constitutional spirit and criteria” from its historical essence to prevent an artificial majority from “crushing” the minority in the Chamber of Deputies through the legislative overrepresentation of Morena.

In a virtual press conference on overrepresentation and judicial reform, José Medina Mora Icaza, national leader of Coparmex, and the participating specialists, invited the federal government and the ruling party to carry out a complete judicial reform that includes the judicial branches of the states, state prosecutors’ offices and the public defender’s office, because in these systems there are delays in the administration and expeditious delivery of justice for victims.

They also warned that the judicial reform promoted by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and his Morena party deepens the legal uncertainty in the country and this has slowed the arrival of fresh investments from nearshoring.

Medina Mora even said that most of the $36 billion in foreign investment in Mexico last year was reinvestment of profits from companies operating in the country, and that most of them are not fresh investments coming from abroad.

In addition to Medina Mora, the press conference was attended by Marcos del Rosario Rodríguez, president of the legal committee of Coparmex national; Mariana Campos Villaseñor, from the civil organization México Evalúa; Pedro Salazar Ugarte, from the Mexican Bar Council; and Jorge Sepúlveda García, secretary of the Mexican Bar Association and College of Lawyers. Medina Mora said that Coparmex has almost 95 years of history in which it has always promoted democracy, respect for freedom of expression, entrepreneurship, decision-making, education and respect for human rights, defending true democracy, the real division of powers and the citizen vote.

That is why they disagree with the winning coalition (Morena-PT-PVEM) seeking 75% of the seats to have absolute control of the lower and upper chambers. This political control affects citizens, does not reflect the reality of the votes at the polls on June 2, and puts the country at risk because it excludes other parties from making important decisions.

He stated that the spirit and criteria of the Mexican federal Constitution establish that no one can have 300 or more deputies. In no case should the political party have a percentage that exceeds 8 points of the vote, which is why this distribution of the legislative representation of plurinominal legislators is very important.

“If the INE can consider a coalition as a single political force for campaign expenses, this same consideration should apply to the distribution of deputies by proportional majority,” he said. “As citizens, we ask the INE and the federal electoral court to respect constitutional principles. When institutions respect the law, they strengthen democracy. We will continue to fight to ensure that the will of the citizens is faithfully reflected, so that we have a more just and equitable country for all citizens.”

Powers in decline

In her turn, Mariana Campos recalled that the Mexican Republic is based on three public powers (Executive, Legislative and Judicial) and today there is a proposal from the party in power that seeks to reduce and weaken one of those powers, which is the Judicial Power. If they succeed, they will weaken the republic and democracy.

“A month ago, millions of us voted to elect those who will represent us. The majority cast their vote for Claudia Sheinbaum and many Mexicans also expressed that they want the ruling coalition (Morena-PT-PVEM) to be the first political force in the country,” he said. “It was an unquestionable victory, but it must be said that in the formation of the Chamber of Deputies an artificial majority is built and this is where the discussion must be broadened and legal inputs must be provided. Morena won 213 federal districts, but seeks to transfer 90 to the Green Party and the Labor Party so that it can obtain a greater number of federal deputies. It is in this transfer of victories that the results reflected by the polls are not consistent and therefore the INE and the federal electoral court have to correct it.”

“To build this artificial majority, Morena needs 372 deputies, which is 74.4% of the chamber, instead of having 315 deputies (63%) which is what it should have and with which it would not reach the qualified majority,” he explained. “This scenario with 315 deputies for the ruling coalition does respect proportional representation, which is 8% of the vote. So, the crux of the matter is that Morena wants to transfer victories to its allied parties, which should not be the case.”

For his part, Marcos del Rosario stressed that it is important that the electoral authorities that will resolve the issue of legislative overrepresentation adhere to the constitutional parameters to guarantee a real democracy. However, Morena’s intention seems to be to create a majority that crushes legislative minorities and silence the voices of the parties that did not obtain the necessary representation.

“We are calling on the authorities to uphold the principle of plurality and to ensure that there is true parliamentary representation,” he said.

To look at the past

Dr. Pedro Salazar was more forceful in legal terms on the issue of legislative overrepresentation and the argument of President López Obrador and Morena is that Article 54 of the federal Constitution, in its fourth and fifth sections, refers to the 8% limit for parties, not coalitions.

That is a very narrow interpretation of the Constitution. The correct interpretation is to look at its origin and meaning. In that sense, coalitions are considered as a single party, a single political force, and since 1996 the 8% limit of the vote for the distribution of legislators by proportional representation has been in force not only for parties, but for coalitions.

He explained that the Court itself carried out an analysis on proportional representation in 1998 and that plurality in the chambers must be guaranteed and, consequently, over-representation in a single political force must be avoided.

“This review action was promoted by the current president López Obrador. Legally, I maintain that the INE and the electoral court must apply the historical interpretation, looking at the origins and ideology,” said the jurist.

“It must respect the purpose for which it was approved to avoid overrepresentation, it must be a guarantor and consider the political rights of minorities. It must be an interpretation that looks at Article 54 in the light established by the principles and democratic regime of the country.”

“A correct interpretation must lead to the conclusion that the 8% limit applies to all political forces and coalitions. Its purpose is to guarantee the rights of minorities and all constitutional safeguards. There are strictly legal arguments for applying it to the ruling coalition and preventing it from having an over-representation in the Chamber of Deputies.”

Jorge Sepúlveda stated that the Mexican Bar Association and the country’s Bar Associations are attentive to the application of the Constitution on the issue of legislative overrepresentation and hopes that the INE and the higher electoral chamber strictly apply the constitutional spirit and criteria. The issue of judicial reform also generated broad positions, explanations and valid arguments that it would be detrimental if it is approved as is in President López Obrador’s initiative because the popular election of judges and magistrates is a model that failed in Bolivia and is not applied in any other country that belongs to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

“I believe that this initiative does not seek to improve justice, which is desirable, but rather has a political intention to weaken the Judicial Branch. If they want a reform, they must work for a system that improves and resolves in favor of the victims, and this initiative is not like that,” said teacher Mariana. “There is an intention to weaken the federal Judicial Branch because it has issued a variety of injunctions against those who have not respected the law and violated the constitution.”

Marcos del Rosario considered that judicial reform is a very worrying issue because it seeks to generate political representation and not to apply justice with respect for human rights. This initiative would affect judicial independence, would create interests alien to justice and does not guarantee that those who administer justice are qualified people, knowledgeable about the law and with proven ethics.

Pedro Salazar recalled that in 2021 a judicial reform was approved, considered the most important in the last 30 years, and its implementation has not yet been completed and President López Obrador already wants another reform.

Furthermore, the current initiative is diametrically opposed to what is intended with the 2021 reform. He said that if the president wants a reform in the area of ​​justice, he must think about ordinary citizens and must include the judicial powers of the states because that is where the strongest part of the administration of justice is due to its proximity to the citizens.

“Local judicial powers operate in a very different way in the country, so there must be a coordinated and rational effort to reform these local powers. This is the great challenge and the great debt we owe to the people,” he said.

Regarding the pressures, opinions and position of the Ministry of the Interior and President López Obrador for Morena to have an absolute majority through overrepresentation, the national president of Coparmex affirmed that none of these officials have the authority to express themselves, which is why the INE and the federal electoral court exist to resolve in accordance with the spirit and legal criteria of the constitution.

In his own words

José Medina Mora Icaza, national leader of Coparmex:

If the INE can consider a coalition as a single political force for campaign expenses, this same consideration should apply in the distribution of deputies by proportional majority.

As citizens, we ask the INE and the federal electoral court to respect constitutional principles. When institutions respect the law, they strengthen democracy. We will continue to fight to ensure that the will of the citizens is reflected, so that we have a more just and equitable country for all citizens.

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