### Seventeen State Congresses Approve Judicial Reform; President López Obrador to Publish in Official Gazette
On the nights of September 11 and into the early hours of September 12, 2024, seventeen state legislatures approved the constitutional reforms related to the Federal Judiciary. The states that adopted these reforms include Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Colima, Durango, Guerrero, Morelos, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Puebla, Quintana Roo, Sinaloa, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, and Yucatán. Only Querétaro’s legislative body voted against it.
This constitutional reform required the approval of at least 17 state legislatures. The so-called “Fourth Transformation,” led by the Morena party and its allies (the Green Ecologist Party of Mexico and the Labor Party), has a qualified majority in 25 of the 32 state congresses. However, the reform also found support among opposition deputies in certain cases.
The approval signifies that the reform has been ratified. Consequently, both houses of the Congress of the Union will have to issue the corresponding declarations. After that, the minutes will be sent to Federal Executive Andrés Manuel López Obrador for publication in the Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF).
The Senate approved the reform around 4:00 a.m. on September 11. Following that, the Congress of Oaxaca held an extraordinary session during the early hours of the following day. In less than five minutes, they became the first legislative body to approve the constitutional reform presented by President López Obrador on February 5.
With an overwhelming vote of 41 out of 42 legislators, including those from the National Action Party (PAN), Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), and the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD), the LXV local legislature fulfilled Article 135 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States.
The Oaxaca Congress has a legislative alliance consisting of 23 Morena legislators, three from the Labor Party, one from the Green Ecologist Party, and additional support from two local parties, Popular Unity and New Alliance.
“The LXV local legislature convened to analyze, discuss, and approve the draft decree sent by the Congress of the Union to amend and repeal various provisions of the Constitution related to judicial reform,” stated the Oaxaca Legislative Body in a release.
“Oaxaca is the first state to support the #JudicialReform. During an extraordinary session and by unanimous vote, we approved the draft decree to reform the Judiciary, allowing the people to decide ministers and judges and thus addressing a historic debt with justice in Mexico. The people’s will has prevailed,” expressed Sergio López Sánchez, president of the Political Coordination Board of the Oaxaca Congress.
“We celebrate that the Congress of Oaxaca is the first to support and approve the judicial reform with a unanimous historical vote during a session held in the early hours. This is a strong step towards building a democratic and independent justice system, and it further proves that transformation advances for the welfare of our people in Oaxaca. Our acknowledgment goes to the legislators who are on the right side of history: social justice,” wrote Oaxaca Governor Salomón Jara Cruz.
### Additional Coverage on Judicial Reform
In related developments found through further research, the Judicial Reform initiative has attracted varied reactions across the country:
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