In Mexico City on Sunday, massive crowds gathered in the main square to show their support for the nation’s electoral body as the upcoming presidential vote approaches, while also protesting against current President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s attempts to consolidate power.
According to organizers, 700,000 people turned out in Mexico City, potentially making this one of the largest protests against Lopez Obrador as his administration nears its end. However, the Mexico City government, which is controlled by Lopez Obrador’s MORENA party, did not immediately release its own count of the turnout.
These protests, part of a series of demonstrations in recent years meant to defend the National Electoral Institution (INE), come in response to Lopez Obrador’s submission of a sweeping package of constitutional reforms to Congress, which includes an overhaul of the INE.
Lopez Obrador has been open about the fact that the package is intended to influence the debate leading up to the June 2 vote, in which his political successor Claudia Sheinbaum is expected to win. However, he has stated that most of the proposed reforms are unlikely to pass.
One of the proposed reforms would transform the INE into the National Institute of Elections and Consults, which would take control of the country’s local electoral bodies and reduce the number of counselors leading the group. The reform would also require electoral judges to be elected by popular vote.
“Authorities are seeking to eliminate (autonomous institutions), to subordinate them or take over them,” Lorenzo Cordova, the former head of the INE, told the crowd. “We’ve seen a ferocious attack against these institutions.”
The president has previously expressed his dissatisfaction with the INE, even accusing the electoral body of contributing to his defeats in the 2006 and 2012 presidential elections.
Protesters on Sunday accused Lopez Obrador of interference in an effort to consolidate power within his party’s government, despite Lopez Obrador’s assurances that he will respect the election results.
In addition to expressing their concerns about the INE, demonstrators also used the protests as an opportunity to voice their opposition to other aspects of Lopez Obrador’s administration, including what they claim is a failure to address widespread violence and social spending programs.
“The current government is leading us to catastrophe,” said Maria de los Angeles Lopez. “To be afraid of going out on the streets, to be afraid our money will no longer be enough, that is why I came out to protest.”
(Reporting by Kylie Madry; Additional reporting by Alberto Fajardo and Gloria Lopez for Reuters TV; Editing by Chris Reese)
