Mexico’s Observatorio Ibero del Sistema de Justicia, housed at the Universidad Iberoamericana, released a report titled “Las primeras diez lecciones de la reforma judicial” one month after the country’s first popular election of judges, magistrates and Supreme Court ministers on June 1. Lead author Ana Laura Magaloni Kerpel said the vote, which filled 881 federal and more than 1,800 local posts, has made the judiciary “more vulnerable than ever.” The study warns that new power networks—particularly the newly created Tribunal de Disciplina Judicial—are reshaping internal checks and balances. Analysts documented the widespread use of party-backed voting guides that proved 90 % effective in determining winners, underscoring risks to judicial independence. At the state level, governors across the political spectrum emulated the federal strategy, using tailored candidate lists to secure control of local courts in Coahuila, Durango, Aguascalientes and Chihuahua, among others. The Observatory cautioned that unless the 2027 electoral cycle is redesigned, the current framework could entrench partisan influence over the courts for at least a decade.