Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum Promises ‘Plan B’ After Electoral Reform Defeat in Congress

Congressional Defeat of Electoral Reform Proposal

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum, on Thursday, played down the recent defeat of a constitutional reform proposal in Congress. It was her first major legislative loss since assuming office. She insisted there was a "Plan B" in place to revamp the electoral system. Sheinbaum's Morena party, facing defections from the smaller allied Green and Workers parties, didn't have the supermajority required to pass the plan in the Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday night. Some of the planned changes, which Sheinbaum's party has presented as budget austerity measures, were interpreted as weakening the power of smaller parties. Sheinbaum, who takes office in 2024, said Thursday that voters will decide whether legislators from other parties kept their commitment to back her administration's objectives.

Debate Over Proportional Representation

One of the major sticking issues was the plan to eliminate a mechanism that allows parties to fill some congressional seats using proportional representation. This was intended to provide smaller parties some seats in Congress based on their national vote percentage, even if they did not win particular congressional district races. Sheinbaum advocated for all members of Congress to be elected by popular vote. The proposal also sought to lower the cost of elections by 25%, including monies for the National Electoral Institute and money distributed to all parties. According to experts, the amendments might jeopardize the integrity of Mexico's elections while strengthening the ruling party.

Reactions and the Government’s ‘Plan B’

Georgina de la Fuente, a political science professor at the Tecnológico de Monterrey University, said that what the vote shows “is that the small parties are not going to give their unconditional support (to Morena), they are not going to put their survival at risk.” Sheinbaum said she would provide more details on what “Plan B” is on Monday, but added that the intent remains the same: “to continue reducing privileges.”