Mexico

Mexico began its transition to democracy in the late 1990s and early 2000s, after decades of one-party rule by the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). This path was slow and sometimes difficult, but led to significant democratic gains. However, recent events have raised significant concerns about democratic decline in Mexico. 

The Rule of Law Lab is engaged in three critical issues to address these concerns: electoral integrity, judicial and prosecutorial independence and accountability, and freedom of expression.

Electoral Integrity

Electoral reforms in the 1990s and early 2000s strengthened Mexico’s electoral institutions and made the electoral process more transparent and competitive. The Federal Electoral Institute (IFE), established in 1990, and its 2014 successor, the National Electoral Institute (INE), have been crucial for ensuring that elections are conducted fairly and freely. Indeed, INE—an autonomous body charged with organizing, implementing, and monitoring Mexican elections–is widely regarded as one of the most effective and independent electoral commissions in the world. In recent years, however, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and his party, Morena, have sought to undermine INE’s independence.

Recent Work

• A Threat to Judicial Independence: Constitutional Reform Proposals in Mexico

 

Freedom of Expression

On January 12, 2024, the Rule of Law Lab and Article 19-Mexico submitted an international law amicus brief in the first case before the Mexican Supreme Court to address the liability of internet intermediaries like Google for content posted online by third parties. The brief argues that affirming the lower court sanctions imposed on Google for not removing online content at the request of a third party, with neither a law nor a court order requiring such removal, and without any consideration of the right to freedom of expression on the internet, would set a troubling precedent. It would violate the free expression provisions of Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, while empowering financially-motivated private corporations like Google to act as censoring authorities without required safeguards of transparency, due process, and accountability.

Recent Work

• Brief on behalf of Article 19-Mexico by the Rule of Law Impact Lab at Stanford Law School
   
• Pause on the Telecommunications Bill: A Democratic Opportunity to Protect Free Expression

 

Judicial and Prosecutorial Independence and Accountability

In 2024, autocratically-inclined President Andrés Manuel López Obrador proposed an overhaul of the Mexican judiciary that would replace all sitting state and federal judges—including those of the Supreme Court—with those elected by popular vote. Through extensive legal analysis, court submissions, public reports, media coverage, and presentations to key stakeholders, the Lab continues to inform the debate on the adverse consequences of this overhaul.

Recent Work

• Brief on behalf of the Mexican Bar Association (Barra Mexicana Colegio de Abogados, A.C.) by the Rule of Law Impact Lab at Stanford Law School

• An Independent and Adequately Funded Judiciary is Crucial for Upholding the Rule of Law in Mexico

• Joint Statement on Mexico’s Constitutional Amendment Threatening Judicial Independence

• Federal Electoral Tribunal’s Violation of Supreme Court Injunction and Exclusion of Judicial Branch Nomination Commission Confirms that the Implementation of Mexico’s Judicial Reform is Deeply Flawed

• El Pais: A chance to support Mexico’s resistance to democratic decline – before it’s too late

• The New York Times: Electing Judges in Mexico? It’s a Bad Idea.

• Journal of Democracy: Mexico's democratic disaster