TITLE TWO.
CHAPTER I. National Sovereignty and form of State Governance
Article 39
The national sovereignty is vested, originally and essentially, in the people. Public power comes from the people and it is institutionalized for the people’s benefit. People, at all times have the inalienable right to change or modify its form of government.
Article 40
It is in the will of the Mexican people to constitute into a representative, democratic, secular, federal, Republic, made up by free and sovereign States in everything related to its domestic regime, but united in a federation established according to the principles of this fundamental law.
Article 41
People exercise sovereignty through the Powers of the Union and the state powers, according to the distribution of jurisdictions as it is established in this Constitution and the respective States’ Constitutions. The states’ constitutions, by no means shall challenge the stipulations and premises of the federal pact.
The legislative and the executive branches of Federal Government shall be renewed by the means of free, authentic and periodical elections. Such elections shall be subjected to the following principles:
- Political parties shall be considered as entities of public interest. The legislation shall specify the norms and requirements for their legal registry and their participation in the electoral process, as well as their rights, duties and prerogatives entitled to them.The political parties’ main objectives shall be: a) to promote people’s participation in democracy, b) to contribute to the integration of national representative entities and as citizens organizations, c) to allow access by citizens to public power, according to their programs, principles and ideas and through universal, free, secret and direct vote, as well as the rules to guarantee gender equality on candidates to local and federal Congress. Only citizens can form a political party and may join, individually and freely to them. Intervention of labor unions, social associations or any other group affiliation is prohibited.
Electoral authorities can intervene in the internal issues of political parties only within the scope of the law and this Constitution.
The national political parties will have the right to participate in the federal, local and municipal elections. The national political party that does not obtain, at least, three percent of the total valid votes emitted in any elections held for the renewal of the Federal Executive or the renewal of both the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies will have its registration cancelled.
- Federal law shall fairly provide national political parties with all necessary resources to carry out their political activities. The law shall also regulate financing system for the parties, in order to prevent private funding to prevail over public funding.Public funding for political parties shall consist of: a) public financing directed to cover the expenses generated by their ordinary and permanent activities, b) public financing for electoral activities during electoral processes. Public funding will be provided according to the law and the following principles:
- Public funding directed to cover ordinary and permanent activities shall be established annually according to the following method: To multiply the total quantity of citizens registered in the electoral register by sixty five percent of daily minimum wage in the Federal District. The thirty percent of the amount obtained by such calculus shall be equally distributed among political parties; seventy percent shall be distributed according to the vote percentage they have obtained at the previous House of Representatives election.
- Public financing for electoral activities in the year when President of the Republic, senators and representatives are elected shall be equal to the fifty percent of public funding provided under the previous paragraph. Public financing for electoral activities in the year when only representatives are elected shall be equal to the thirty percent of public funding provided under the previous paragraph.
- Public funding for specific activities, related to education, training, socioeconomic and political research and publishing activities, shall be equal to the three percent of the total public financing for all parties according to paragraph “a” per year. The thirty percent of the amount obtained by such calculus shall be equally distributed among political parties and seventy percent shall be distributed according to the vote percentage they have obtained at the previous House of Representatives election.
The law shall define limits for spending in the internal process for candidate selection, as well as for electoral campaigns. The law shall also establish maximum limits for monetary contributions provided by sympathizers and affiliates. The law shall also establish procedures to control and monitor the origin and use of financial resources of the parties, and shall determine the measures to punish any illegal activity in this respect.
The law shall establish procedures to help parties to pay their liabilities in the event that they lose registration, as well as to regulate the way their properties will be transferred to the State.
- National Political Parties have the right to use the media and social communication means permanently. Independent candidates shall have access to prerogatives for their electoral campaigns according to the law.
- The National Electoral Institute shall be the only authority to manage media time for the State in radio and television to fulfill its own means and for the national political parties to exercise its rights, according to the law and to the following provisions:
- From the run-up to the election campaign until the election day, the National Electoral Institute shall get forty eight minutes daily, distributed in two to three minutes segments per hour in each radio station and television channel, according to the schedule defined in paragraph “d” of this section. In the period between the run-up for the internal election and the beginning of the electoral campaign, the fifty percent of the time in radio and television shall be distributed to the goals and objectives of the electoral authorities and the remaining minutes shall be distributed to air generic messages from the political parties in the terms established by law.
- During run-up, political parties shall get, jointly, one minute per transmission hour at each radio station and television channel. The remaining time shall be used according to the law.
- During electoral campaigns, the media shall allocate at least eighty-five per cent of the time established in paragraph “a” of this section to political parties and candidates to guarantee their rights.
- Transmissions about political parties in each radio station and television channel shall be distributed between 06:00 and 24:00 hours.
- According to the rights of the political parties and, in a given case, to the independent candidates, airtime shall be distributed among them in the following way: seventy percent shall be distributed according to the vote percentage obtained by each political party at the previous House of Representatives election, the remaining thirty percent of airtime shall be equally distributed among political parties; from these equally distributed parts, up to one shall be assigned to all the independent candidates.
- Political parties that are not present in the Mexican Congress shall only get the airtime in radio and television corresponding to the percentage, equally distributed among parties, mentioned in the last item.
- Apart form the running-up period and the electoral campaigns, and with independence of the items a) and b) of this section, the National Electoral Institute shall get at radio and television airtime up to twelve percent of the total airtime allocated for the State, according to the law and under any modality. From this twelve percent, the National Electoral Institute shall equally allocate fifty percent between the political parties. The remaining fifty percent shall be used by the National Electoral Institute for its own purposes or another, federal or local, electoral authority. Every political party shall distribute its airtime according to the schemes provided by the law. In any case, the airtime shall be transmitted according to the schedule designed by the National Electoral Institute according to item d) of this section. In special occasions and with the proper justifications, the Institute might use the time that corresponds to party messages used to promote a political party.
Political parties or candidates cannot, in any time, buy airtime on television or radio by themselves or through third persons.
No private individual or legal entity can buy airtime on television or radio to influence political preference, or to promote or attack certain candidate or party. Such kind of media messages that have been contracted in a foreign country cannot be transmitted in the Mexican territory.
The States and the Federal District shall issue laws to enforce observance of the provisions established in the two previous paragraphs.
- For electoral aims in the Mexican States, the National Electoral Institute shall allocate and manage the airtime in radio and television in stations and channels with coverage in the given state, according to the law and the following provisions:
- In the event of state elections that coincide with federal elections, airtime for the state shall be included within the total time allocated in accordance with paragraphs “a”, “b” and “c” of section “A”.
- For the rest of electoral processes, allocation shall be done according to the law and to the criteria provided in this Constitution.
- Airtime distribution among the parties, including local parties and independent candidates, shall be carried out in accordance with the criteria established in section “A” and with the applicable legislation.
If the National Electoral Institute considers that total airtime in radio and television granted by this and the previous paragraphs were not enough for its own purposes, for another electoral authority’s purposes or for the independent candidates, it can issue orders to cover the deficit within the powers vested to it.
- In the political and electoral campaign advertising, the political parties and candidates cannot use terms or expressions that denigrate or slander people.During federal and local election campaigns until the election day, all governmental advertising shall be suspended, no matter it belongs to federal, state or municipal government, or to the Federal District government or to any other governmental agency. The only exceptions shall be: a) informative campaigns carried out by electoral authorities, b) educational and health campaigns and c) civil protection campaigns in the event of emergencies.
- The National Electoral Institute, through expedited proceedings described by law, shall investigate the transgressions of these dispositions and will produce a file of these violations to present it before the Electoral Court of the Federal Judicial Power for their knowledge and consideration. During this procedure, the Institute may establish precautionary procedures such as the immediate cancellation or suspension of any message transmitted by radio or television, as established by the law.
- The National Electoral Institute shall be the only authority to manage media time for the State in radio and television to fulfill its own means and for the national political parties to exercise its rights, according to the law and to the following provisions:
- The law shall fix the terms and requirements for the selection and nomination processes for candidates to electoral positions. The law shall also establish the appropriate rules for run-up and electoral campaigns.The duration of the electoral campaign when there are elections for the President of the Republic, senators and representatives shall be of ninety days. The duration of the electoral campaign shall be sixty days for the year that only representatives will be elected. Never the duration of run-up to the election campaign shall exceed two-thirds of the period granted for electoral campaigns.
Infringement of these provisions by parties, private individuals or legal entities will be punished according to the law.
- The State is responsible for the electoral organization. It is organized by the National Electoral Institute and by the local electoral institutes, according to the norms established by this Constitution.
- The National Electoral Institute is an autonomous entity, which is endowed with legal personality and its own assets. The legislative branch, the national political parties and the citizens shall participate in the integration of the governing bodies of the Institute, according to the terms provided by law. The basic principles that guide the functions and performance of the Institute are: certainty, legality, independence, impartiality, objectivity and maximum publicity.The National Electoral Institute shall have electoral jurisdiction and independent character regarding its decisions and functioning, and its performance shall be professional. National Electoral Institute structure shall include managerial, executive, technical and surveillance organs. The General Council will be the directive and executive body, it will be formed with one President of the Electoral Council and ten Electoral Councilors with the right to vote and participate in the debate; in addition, congressional Councilors, representatives of the political parties and an Executive Secretary, these will participate in the debate but will not be able to vote. Law shall regulate the organization and functioning of the Institute’s organs, the relationship between them and the relationship between them and the local electoral entities. The executive and technical organs shall employ the qualified personnel necessary to execute its attributions. The internal comptroller office shall be in charge of the accountability and surveillance procedures of all the incomes and expenses of the Institute, this office must be granted with managerial and technical autonomy to do so. The internal working relations and procedures with the public servants shall be regulated by the dispositions in the electoral law and the statute that the General Council approves. The surveillance organ of the electoral register [padrón electoral] must be formed mainly with representatives of the national political parties. During the election day, citizens must be in charge of the directive organs at the poll stations.
All the sessions of the directive and collegiate organs in the institution shall be public in the terms described by the law.
The Institute shall have an electoral office that is legally vested with public trust to attest for any electoral acts. The law will describe its attributions, powers and functioning.
The President of the Council and the Electoral Councilors shall be elected to serve for a period of nine years and may not be reelected. They shall be elected through the vote of two-thirds of the members present in the House of Representatives according to the following procedures:
- The House of Representatives will present an agreement for the election of a President of the Electoral Council and the Electoral Councilors that will shall contain a public call, the stages of the process and the time limits, as well as the procedures to install a technical committee for the evaluation of candidates, this committee shall be formed with seven persons with professional recognition, three of this persons shall be nominated by the executive political organ at the House of Representatives, two by the National Commission for Human Rights and the remaining two shall be nominated by the National Transparency Agency [organo garante] established by the 6th Article of this Constitution.
- The committee shall receive the list of all candidates for Electoral Councilor that present themselves to the call of candidates. The committee shall verify that the candidates fulfill the constitutional and legal requirements, as well as their suitability to occupy the office. It is responsibility of the committee to select five best candidates according to the evaluation for each vacancy, then the relation of candidates will be sent to the executive political organ at the House of Representatives.
- The executive political organ at the House of Representatives shall promote agreements for the election of President of the Electoral Council and Electoral Councilors; this organ must hold an election to select the candidate in the terms described by law and then the proposal shall be sent to the floor of the House of Representative for its consideration.
- The agreement stated in the item a) shall establish a time limit to have the election in the executive political organ at the House of Representatives, if this organ does not hold an election or do not sends the proposals stated in the previous item, or even when it has done all the proceedings but the required vote threshold has not been met then they shall call for a special session to reach a decision by drawing lots from the list of candidates presented by the evaluation committee.
- In the case when no decision has been agreed according to the items c) and d) within the time limits described in item a), the Supreme Court of Justice, in a public hearing, shall make the election by drawing lots from the list of candidates presented by the evaluation committee.
Given the absolute absence of the President of the Electoral Council or from any of the Electoral Councilors during the first six years of their term in office, a substitute shall be elected to finish the corresponding period of the vacancy. If the absence happens during the last three years of the office period a new Electoral Councilor shall be elected for a new office period.
The President of the Electoral Council and the Electoral Councilors shall not have another employment or hold any other office or commission with exception of those that represent the General Council or the non-remunerated positions in academic, scientific, research, cultural or philanthropic associations.
The head of the Office of the Comptroller General of the Institute shall be designated by the vote of two thirds of the present members of the House of Representatives and by proposal of the public institutions of superior education, according to the terms described by law. The Comptroller General shall remain in office for six years and may only be reelected once. This office shall be administratively dependent of the General Council and will maintain the technical coordination with the Superior Comptroller General.
The Executive Secretary shall be appointed by two-thirds of the General Council after his nomination by the President of the Electoral Council.
The law shall establish the requirements that every individual must meet in order to be appointed as the President of the Electoral Council, Electoral Councilor, the Internal Comptroller or the Executive Secretary of the National Electoral Institute. Those individuals having served as President of the Electoral Council, Electoral Councilor or Executive Secretary may not hold a position in those public offices or powers where they were involved in the election of the members of that office or power, nor they can be hired by the executive organs of political parties or being candidates of public office for the next two years after their time in office at the Institute have concluded.
Congressional Councilors shall be appointed by the parliamentary groups with party affiliation in any of the two Chambers of Congress, at a ratio of one per each parliamentary group notwithstanding their recognition in both Chambers of the Congress.
- The National Electoral Institute shall have the following attributions according to the terms established by this constitution and the laws:
- For the federal and local electoral processes:
- Electoral training;
- Electoral geography as well as the design and delimitation of the electoral districts and the division of the territory into electoral sections;
- The electoral registration list.
- The location of electoral polls and the designation of the functionaries at the directive board for each poll station;
- The criteria, guidelines, formats and rules for the preliminary results program, the opinion or result surveys, electoral observation, rapid counts, document printing and production of any electoral materials;
- The accountability for income and expenses of the political parties and candidates;
- And any other that the law establishes.
- For the federal electoral processes:
- The rights and prerogatives that the candidates and political parties have access to;
- The preparation for the election day;
- Document printing and the production of electoral material;
- The count and scrutiny of the votes according to the terms established by law;
- Declaring the validity of the election and issuing the electoral certification for the elected deputies and senators;
- The count of the votes for President of the Mexican United States in every uninominal electoral districts;
- Others established by law.
The National Electoral Institute may assume, by agreement with the competent authorities at the local entities that ask for, the organization of the local electoral processes in the terms that the applicable legislation states. By petition of the political parties and using their monetary prerogative, the institute may also organize their internal elections to elect their leadership.
The financial accountability and supervision of the political parties and the candidates’ campaigns shall be responsibility of the General Council of the National Electoral Institute. The law shall detail the General Council attributions for that specific function as well as the creation of the technical organs, dependent of it, in charge of the surveillance and proceedings to establish the corresponding sanctions. For the accomplishment of this function, the General Council is not limited by banking, fiscal or fiduciary secrecy and shall be supported and assisted by the local and federal authorities.
In case that the National Electoral Institute delegates the accountability and supervision functions, its technical organ shall be entitled to the attributions of the previous paragraph to avoid the limitation of its functions.
- For the federal and local electoral processes:
- In the Mexican states the local elections shall be the responsibility of the Local Public Organs in the terms that this constitution establishes and shall execute the corresponding functions in regard to the following subjects:
- The rights and prerogatives that the candidates and political parties have access to;
- Civic education;
- Preparation for the election day;
- Document printing and the production of electoral material;
- Count and scrutiny of the votes according to the terms established by law;
- Declaring the validity of the election and issuing the electoral certification for the elected local officers;
- Count and scrutiny for the election of the local executive power;
- Preliminary results, opinion and results surveys, electoral observation and rapid counts according to the guidelines established in the previous part;
- Organization, development, count and announcement of the results in the corresponding civic participation means provided by the local legislation;
- Every other function not reserved to the National Electoral Institute;
- Others that the law establishes.
According to the postulates established by the law and with the approval of a majority of at least eight votes at the General Council, the National Electoral Institute may:
- Directly assume the execution of activities regarding the electoral functions that corresponds to the local electoral organs;
- Devolve in the local organs the attributions described in the section a) from part B of this article without giving up the right to resume its direct exercise at any moment;
- Bring to its knowledge any matter competence of the local electoral organs when its transcendence or importance requires so or when the matter shall be used to establish an interpretation criterion.
The National Electoral Institute shall have the attribution to appoint or remove the members of the executive organ at the local public organs in the terms established by this constitution.
- The National Electoral Professional Service shall include the selection, hiring, training, professionalization, promotion, evaluation, personnel rotation, permanence and discipline of the public servants of the executive and technical organs at the National Electoral Institute and the local public organs at the federative entities in regard to electoral matters. The National Electoral Institute shall standardize the organization and functioning of the Professional Service.
- The National Electoral Institute is an autonomous entity, which is endowed with legal personality and its own assets. The legislative branch, the national political parties and the citizens shall participate in the integration of the governing bodies of the Institute, according to the terms provided by law. The basic principles that guide the functions and performance of the Institute are: certainty, legality, independence, impartiality, objectivity and maximum publicity.The National Electoral Institute shall have electoral jurisdiction and independent character regarding its decisions and functioning, and its performance shall be professional. National Electoral Institute structure shall include managerial, executive, technical and surveillance organs. The General Council will be the directive and executive body, it will be formed with one President of the Electoral Council and ten Electoral Councilors with the right to vote and participate in the debate; in addition, congressional Councilors, representatives of the political parties and an Executive Secretary, these will participate in the debate but will not be able to vote. Law shall regulate the organization and functioning of the Institute’s organs, the relationship between them and the relationship between them and the local electoral entities. The executive and technical organs shall employ the qualified personnel necessary to execute its attributions. The internal comptroller office shall be in charge of the accountability and surveillance procedures of all the incomes and expenses of the Institute, this office must be granted with managerial and technical autonomy to do so. The internal working relations and procedures with the public servants shall be regulated by the dispositions in the electoral law and the statute that the General Council approves. The surveillance organ of the electoral register [padrón electoral] must be formed mainly with representatives of the national political parties. During the election day, citizens must be in charge of the directive organs at the poll stations.
- A judicial appeal system shall be established in accordance to this Constitution and to the law in order to protect the constitutionality and the legality principles, under which electoral decisions and resolutions must be made. Such system shall provide definitive resolutions in every stage of election process and shall protect the citizens’ political right to vote, right to be elected and right to assembly, according to the Article 99 of this Constitution.In the electoral matters, legal or constitutional appeals will not result in the suspension of the appealed resolution or act.
The law will establish the electoral nullification system for the local and federal elections due to serious, fraudulent and determinant violations according to the following cases:
- When the campaign expenses exceed five percent of the total amount authorized
- When informative coverage or airtime in radio or television were bought without regard to the postulates specified in the law.
- When public resources or resources from illicit origin are received or used for the campaign finance.
The previous violations shall be presented in a physical and objective manner. Violations shall be presumed to be determinant when the voting difference between the first and second candidate is less than five percent.
In case a nullification of the election, an extraordinary election shall be announced and the rebuked person will not be able to run for office.
