Protests Expected Over Congress Overrepresentation: Gálvez

Xóchitl Gálvez, former presidential candidate for Fuerza y Corazón por México, warned that if authorities confirm an overrepresentation of Morena and its allies in Congress, opposition parties and civil society will protest to defend democratic values.

Gálvez noted that the Supreme Court currently has a thesis, supported by Olga Sánchez, former Minister of the Interior, which advocates for fair party representation in Congress. She stressed that the Electoral Tribunal and the National Electoral Institute should consider this thesis when assigning proportional representation seats. “When the electoral reform was implemented, alliances were not factored in, so we will leave the interpretation to the courts. However, as it stands, the vote of someone who supported this alliance I led is worth less than a vote for MORENA, which infringes on their human rights.”

Gálvez claimed that MORENA’s strategy for overrepresentation aims to expedite the approval of reforms like those in Plan C. “They do not deserve a qualified majority; they won with 54% of the votes and should not control 75% of the seats in Congress.” 

Is There Overrepresentation in the Chamber?

Accusations of overrepresentation arose after the Ministry of the Interior announced that MORENA and its allies are expected to hold 74% of the seats in the Chamber of Deputies, nearly 20 points above their 54.7% vote share.  

According to the Mexican Constitution, Art. 54, no political party may have more than 300 deputies, and in no case may a political party have a number of deputies that represents a percentage of the total chamber exceeding their national vote percentage by more than 8 points. 

Minister of the Interior Luisa María Alcalde stated that the party will not be illegally overrepresented in Congress, as these two fundamental constitutional rules—the limit of 300 seats and the 8% threshold relative to the national vote—are not being breached. "MORENA will have 248 deputies, far from the 300 limit, so in no way is the law being violated.”

Martín Faz, Electoral Councelor, INE explained that the Mexican Constitution places limits on overrepresentation by individual parties, not coalitions. "Legally speaking, the law is by political party. The question is whether the Electoral Tribunal could make a systemic interpretation and agree with those who believe it should be by coalition," said Luis Ugalde, former President Councilor, IFE.