The results of the judicial election in Mexico have sparked controversy due to a handful of highly questionable winners. At least 13 candidates have criminal records that could jeopardize their victory. The candidates in question have been exposed by experts, electoral advisors, and social organizations such as Defensorxs for their ties to organized crime leaders, crimes such as fuel theft, trafficking, torture, harassment, femicide, sexual violence, and malpractice in public service. All 13 are one step away from becoming federal and local judges and magistrates. Federal judges have only two remaining channels: the National Electoral Institute (INE) and the Electoral Tribunal, the last remaining dam.
One of the most controversial is Hernán Vega Burgos. This lawyer has won a local magistrate position in the Superior Court of Justice of Yucatán and is accused of protecting a trafficking and sexual exploitation network in his state during his term as delegate of the National Migration Institute in 2009. Two women, originally from Costa Rica, accused Vega Burgos of charging them a fee for prostitution. La Jornada recorded the statement of one of the alleged victims: “If we refused, Hernán threatened to rape us and deport us.” The lawyer has maintained that he was the victim of a fabricated crime by the State Attorney General’s Office. His victory could still be overturned by the local electoral body, which has not submitted the certificates.
Silvia Delgado, former lawyer for Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, has won the local election in Chihuahua. The litigator received the majority certificate from the Chihuahua State Electoral Institute this Wednesday. This puts her one step closer to becoming a criminal judge for the Bravos judicial district, which covers three municipalities in the state. The Electoral Tribunal, the final authority in electoral matters, will have the final say.
Héctor Ulises Orduña has won the position of district judge in Veracruz from behind bars. The candidate has been in pretrial detention for almost two months, accused of sexual abuse of minors and child pornography. The incidents date back to 2021. The accused allegedly indecently touched his underage niece. His status is uncertain. Guadalupe Taddei, president of the INE (National Electoral Institute), has said that the case is being reviewed as there is no final sentence. However, she has confirmed that, while he remains in prison, he will not be eligible for a certificate of majority.
Jaime Cisneros joins the list. The candidate won the position of circuit magistrate in Nuevo León, although he faces accusations of harassing students while teaching at the state university. This and two other cases have been presented by Councilor Carla Humphrey, who proposed not to provide him with the majority certificate, although her proposal was rejected by a majority vote. Sergio Díaz, a candidate for magistrate in the Monterrey Regional Court, and Genaro Antonio Valerio, aspiring to be a civil magistrate in Sonora, are the other cases reported by the councilor. The former is accused of being a child support debtor, and the latter has various complaints of workplace harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of power. All three victories could still be suspended by the INE.
Among the most high-profile names are members of the evangelical church La Luz del Mundo, whose leader, Naasón Joaquín, has been convicted in the United States of child sexual abuse. They are Madián Sinaí Menchaca Sierra, daughter of Bishop Nicolás Menchaca, legal counsel for the sect’s spiritual leader and current leader of the congregation; and Eluzai Rafael Aguilar, lawyer and daughter of Samuel Rafael Quintana, minister of the same church. The trio is completed by Salma Jaanai Martínez Macías, who won the election for federal criminal judge for Coahuila, supported by members of the religious group. The cases are still in the hands of the INE (National Institute of Statistics and Census).
Irrica Gabriela Pacheco Torres is preparing to assume the position of district criminal judge for the Iztapalapa mayor’s office in Mexico City. However, at the time of her registration as a candidate, she was subject to a six-month suspension. The aspiring judge was accused of procedural fraud and use of false documents, according to local media reports. Furthermore, until a couple of months ago, the criminal lawyer allegedly served as the lawyer for Luis Erick Barajas García, alias El Trompas, an alleged member of the Unión Tepito gang, arrested in July of last year. The criminal lawyer’s victory is in the process of being certified. The INE (National Institute of Statistics and Census) will decide in the coming days the validity of 464 magistrate positions and 386 courts.
Another case is Alejandra Lozano Maya. Accused of torture, sexual abuse, and extortion, she won the election to be a local criminal judge for Mexico City. She was an agent of the State of Mexico Prosecutor’s Office for two decades and was twice accused of committing arbitrary detentions and torture, which led to the opening of two investigation files, according to an investigation by Animal Político. Lozano has received her certificate, and a possible setback lies ahead in the courts.
Norma Alicia Sandoval Torres has been the most voted for criminal judge in Baja California. Sandoval was dismissed as a public prosecutor in 2017 for allegedly fabricating evidence against four people arrested for drug trafficking. She was followed by Tania Contreras, who won a position as a local magistrate in Tamaulipas and, due to her vote-getting, is poised to preside over the State Supreme Court of Justice. The Tamaulipas native is accused of being the link between the state executive branch and a network of corruption, bribery, and fuel theft trafficking in the Customs Agency, according to a report by the organization Defensorxs. Contreras has already received her certificate, which puts her case in the hands of the courts.
To the handful of candidates of dubious origin, another batch of candidates has been added who fail to meet the minimum GPA requirement of eight for a bachelor’s degree and nine for their specialty. Nearly forty candidates have managed to win without meeting the minimum academic qualification requirement, according to electoral advisors. This has once again put the INE on the ropes, which has taken a few days to review whether the virtual judges and circuit magistrates meet the suitability and eligibility profile before assessing the election and submitting the majority certificates. This opens a window to thwart the arrival of questionable profiles in the Judiciary.
Source: elpais
