The president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, is ready for his next battle in Congress.
This Monday, the head of the Executive presented an extensive package of constitutional reforms with an eye toward his last year in government and the presidential election.
The proposals will need opposition votes to be approved and range from the creation of a new pension scheme to a reconfiguration of the Judiciary, including the disappearance of autonomous bodies, changes to the electoral system and the permanent militarization of the Guard. National.
These are some key points of the initiatives.
Pensions: a far-reaching reform and political profitability
López Obrador proposes a transformation of the pension system so that workers receive their full salary upon retirement and not just half, as is the case with the current scheme, which dates back to 1997. Given criticism about the viability of the initiative, the president has said that the Government will assume part of the economic burden to relieve the employer sector.
The popularity of the proposal, which promises to shake up the political table heading into the June 2 elections, has caused the opposition to announce its support, despite its initial reluctance.
The legislative debate will be marked by the hows: Morena assures that it will be financed in part with the resources recovered when state bodies disappear, while opponents maintain that this would imply a democratic setback.
The president also seeks to elevate the delivery of social programs to constitutional status: he proposes reducing the minimum age to receive a pension for older adults from 68 to 65, giving a pension to people with disabilities and granting scholarships to students from poor families.
A new clash with the Judiciary
Morena proposes that the ministers of the Supreme Court, as well as other judges and magistrates of the Judicial Branch, be elected by popular vote.
López Obrador has accused the high court of being a “conservative power” and “corrupt,” while opponents and specialists warn that the change opens the door to profiles that are not qualified and to interference by interest groups or even the organized crime.
In the drafts that have circulated of the reform, it is intended to reduce the full Court from 11 to 9 ministers, shorten its term from 15 to 12 years and lower the salaries of its members.
“The Judiciary cannot continue to be a set of institutions serving political interests,” López Obrador said in his speech.
On the verge of a new confrontation between powers, the ruling bloc defends the need for “a clean sweep” in the branch of justice administration to guarantee its independence.
The opposition considers the opposite, which is an attempt to weaken and punish judges after stopping several priority projects for this Administration.
Minimum wage: a challenge for the opposition
The increase in the minimum wage has been one of the most popular measures of this six-year term.
López Obrador has advanced changes in article 123, which regulates work, so that increases in what workers must earn are never below inflation.
He also seeks to guarantee basic salaries and labor rights in key sectors, such as teachers, health personnel, police and soldiers.
The National Education Workers Union and other large union organizations have made public their support for the president's plan.
The opposition maintains doubts about the budgetary viability of the project, but risks having its rejection take its toll at the polls.
Checks and balances: the disappearance of autonomous organs
López Obrador has been a vocal critic of autonomous bodies, considering them “a golden bureaucracy.”
The president is going for the elimination of these organizations, designed so that they are not influenced by the Government in power and that they serve as counterweights to government actions that violate the interests of citizens.
The debate starts from extremes: the president maintains that “they are useless” and his detractors see a risk that the Executive will once again concentrate power.
After announcing that his intention was to strike down “everyone,” López Obrador clarified that the National Human Rights Commission would not be affected by this initiative.
The proposal has political and economic implications: it will be discussed whether these institutions are still useful for citizens and whether the resources they receive can be allocated to other areas, such as pensions.
Elections and consultations, under examination
After failing with the so-called plan B, his first attempt at electoral reform, López Obrador announced that he will propose new changes that would affect the National Electoral Institute (INE) and the organization of voting.
The president advocates reducing the number of deputies from 500 to 300 legislators and from 128 to 64 senators.
He also said that financing for political parties and political campaigns will be reduced with the argument of saving resources.
The cut would include the creation of a new electoral referee with a more limited structure that would absorb the functions performed by local representations.
He proposes that electoral councilors be elected by direct vote of citizens.
He also intends to remove locks from popular consultations, which currently require a participation of 40% of voters to be binding and with the reform, only 30%.
The opposition has insisted that “the INE is not touched” and they anticipate that they will not support this proposal.
A military-style National Guard
The National Guard has been the most ambitious commitment of this Government in the fight against insecurity.
López Obrador wants the corporation to depend permanently on the Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) and not just temporarily.
The transition to a civilian command was one of the conditions imposed by the opposition to support its creation at the beginning of the six-year term.
Despite the questions about militarization and the delivery of concessions to the Army in the civil sphere, the president assures that the protection of the Sedena is fundamental against violence and to guarantee that the Guard is not infiltrated by criminals.
The proposal reignites the debate on the Security policy of this Government and on the impact of crime, one of the population's greatest concerns.
A controversial turn against fentanyl
The fentanyl crisis has been one of the thorniest issues in the bilateral relationship with the United States.
Faced with pressure from Washington, López Obrador has denied that fentanyl is produced in Mexico and has assured that the country is only a transit territory for the drug.
The political turbulence has also impacted the field of health: a national addiction survey has not been carried out for years and the Government has also denied that the consumption of this substance south of the border has increased recently.
The president proposes to prohibit by law the use of fentanyl and other synthetic drugs, which has been criticized for criminalizing users and violating their right to health to receive treatments and medications that can save their lives.
The prohibitionist turn also raises doubts about its effectiveness as a measure in the so-called war on drugs.
Austerity
López Obrador has adopted austerity as a hallmark of his Administration and has defended the idea that no public official should earn more than the president.
Under the slogan that “there cannot be a rich government and a poor people,” the president advocates enshrining this principle in the Constitution and as a “state policy.”
The opposition claims that taking austerity to the extreme has been counterproductive for various government bodies and has complicated their tasks.
The Government insists that if it tightens its belt it can use these resources for pensions and the social programs it has promoted.
A new attempt to reform the electrical industry
Last week, the Supreme Court invalidated a reform by López Obrador that sought to give preponderance in the electricity sector to the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE).
The president announced that he will insist on this project, to which he will make adjustments to give greater certainty to private sector actors.
The companies claim that the Electrical Industry Law gives an unfair advantage to the CFE and limits private participation in the sector.
It has also caused trade tensions with the United States and Canada, which say it goes against the USMCA.
The president considers that the setback came during the Government of Enrique Peña Nieto, his predecessor, and he will seek to return to the scheme where the role of the State predominated.
“The CFE will be a public and strategic company,” he said.
The president's most ambitious bet
This is the most ambitious reform package that López Obrador has presented.
He does so in his last year in power, convinced that his political legacy and the foundations of the next Government are at stake.
The battery of initiatives also arrives a month before the presidential campaigns begin, in the final stretch that will define his successor.
Forced to position itself at the pace set by the president, the opposition accuses that it is the last attempt from Los Pinos to interfere in the election, while Morena is committed to demonstrating that his rivals are an obstacle to the transformation that the country needs.
The future of the highly anticipated proposals is uncertain and will be decided in the Legislature, but its implications will go beyond both Chambers.
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