Mexico’s ruling party headed toward control of newly elected Supreme Court, vote tallies show

Mexico's Morena party gains control over Supreme Court, raising concerns about checks and balances in the nation.

Mexico’s ruling Morena party appeared to be heading toward control over the Supreme Court, preliminary vote tallies of the country's first judicial election indicated.

While votes were still being counted for the majority of the 2,600 federal, state and local judge positions up for grabs in Sunday’s judicial elections, results rolled in for the nine Supreme Court positions.

The majority of the newly elected justices share strong ties and ideological alignments with the ruling party, shifting a once fairly balanced high court into the hands of the very party that overhauled the judicial system to elect judges for the first time.

Experts warned the shift would undercut checks and balances in the Latin American nation: The governing party would now be close to controlling all three branches of government, and President Claudia Sheinbaum and her party also would have a easier path to push through their agenda.

“We’re watching as power is falling almost entirely into the hands of one party,” said Georgina De la Fuente, election specialist with the Mexican consulting firm Strategia Electoral. “There isn’t any balance of power.”

Some of those headed toward election were members or former members of the party. A number of them, who were Supreme Court justices prior to the election, were appointed by former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Sheinbaum’s mentor who pushed through the judicial overhaul last year.

Others were advisers to the president or the party or campaigned with politically aligned visions for the judiciary.