Yahoo TV

STORY: :: Mexico's Senate pause the debate on a judicial overhaul after protesters storm the building

:: September 10, 2024

:: Mexico City, Mexico

Demonstrators flooded the upper level of the chamber, chanting "traitors" in opposition to the reform, which has prompted weeks of widespread protest.

Mexico's major trading partners, the United States and Canada, have warned the changes could undermine the trade pact of the three countries, the USMCA, and negatively impact investment.

The backbone of the constitutional reform, proposed by outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, calls for the election by popular vote of more than 6,500 judges and magistrates, including the Supreme Court. Lopez Obrador and President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum have vigorously defended the reform as essential for holding judges accountable and reducing corruption.

Critics have attacked it as a blatant doubling-down of power by ruling party Morena.

As senators debated the reform, opposition lawmakers accused the ruling bloc of underhanded tactics to secure the necessary two-thirds majority.

The vote, which will likely go into the early hours of Wednesday morning, is expected to be tight, with the ruling coalition formally one senator short.