By Oyintari Ben
For the first time ever, Mexico’s Supreme Court chose a woman to preside over the country’s highest judicial body.
On Monday, Justice Norma Lucia Pina, who has pledged to maintain the court’s independence, was elected to a four-year term as its president by a vote of six to five.
With Pina’s election, the court may clash more with the left-wing government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador of Mexico, with whom Pina has had disagreements in the past over matters like energy policy.
The relationship between Lopez Obrador and the supreme court of the country is already tense. Since the Supreme Court struck down several of his measures, the president has been open in his criticism of the court.
Every four years, Mexico’s Supreme Court conducts presidential elections. With outgoing Chief Justice Arturo Zaldivar’s term scheduled to expire on December 31, Lopez Obrador supported Yasmin Esquivel in an effort to pick a more friendly figure to preside over the Supreme Court.
However, a December news article claimed that Esquivel had plagiarized her college thesis, casting doubt on her candidacy. Esquivel claims that the previous thesis plagiarized her work, however the 1987 paper she presented was reportedly similar to one that had been filed the year before.
Pina’s election, meanwhile, was welcomed by members of the opposition, with conservative politicians like Kenia López Rabadán applauding her appointment.
Some officials close to Lopez Obrador have also welcomed Pina’s election.
Pina, who will oversee the country’s entire judicial branch, has defended Mexico’s efforts to transition to renewable energy. That has put her at odds with Lopez Obrador, who promoted a plan to bring the energy sector under the control of the national power utility Comision Nacional de Electricidad (CFE) and the state oil firm Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex).
