Plan B Electoral Reform Declared Constitutional — Reshapes Mexico's Electoral Institutions

After 20 of Mexico's 32 state legislatures ratified the Plan B electoral reform — surpassing the constitutional threshold of 17 — the Chamber of Deputies on April 14 issued the formal declaration of constitutional approval. The Senate followed with its own declaration on April 15. Many state congresses held extraordinary sessions and completed ratification in under 10 minutes, with PAN and PRI denouncing the speed as a 'legislative steamroller.' The reform, backed by Morena, PVEM, and Movimiento Ciudadano, amends Articles 115, 116, and 134 of the Mexican Constitution. Key provisions include: capping municipal councils at 15 members with gender parity, limiting state legislature budgets to 0.7% of state revenues, reducing INE and Electoral Tribunal officials' salaries, regulating AI use in electoral processes, cutting political advertising time on TV and radio from 48 to 35 minutes per day, and reducing public party financing by 25%. Secondary legislation must be harmonized by May 30, 2026. PAN and PRI condemned the reform as undermining INE's operational capacity and accelerating democratic backsliding; Morena framed it as lowering the cost of democracy.