Background on the Observatorio Electoral Judicial
The Observatorio Electoral Judicial is a group of organizations dedicated to monitoring and ensuring fairness in the judicial election process. Their recent report sheds light on irregularities in campaign practices for candidates aiming to become judges, magistrates, or ministers of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN).
Irregular Campaign Practices
As the judicial election campaigns near their conclusion, the Observatorio Electoral Judicial has identified at least 380 candidates who have engaged in paid advertising on traditional and digital media to promote their candidacies. This practice is explicitly prohibited for these elections, according to the report titled “Most Relevant Findings from the Campaigns.”
Paid Support and Coordinated Efforts
The report highlights the presence of non-organic support benefiting certain candidacies, particularly those for positions in the SCJN. Coordinated efforts have also been observed to position specific profiles prominently on social media platforms.
Fake Polls and Unregistered Encuestadoras
The Observatorio Electoral Judicial has discovered the existence of fictitious polls that do not comply with electoral authority registration requirements. They have identified 14 suspicious polling firms conducting exercises on SCJN candidacies without alignment between the poll results and social media profiles indicating voting intentions.
Indirect Advertising and Influencer Accounts
Some polling firms avoid direct advertisement of their polls, instead using alternative methods like paid social media ads. The report also notes that certain pro-establishment influencer accounts systematically replicate these contents, amplifying the reach of specific candidacies.
Implications and Concerns
The report expresses deep concern over the unfairness created by these rule violations in the electoral contest. Certain candidacies have promoted themselves extensively on social media using tens of thousands of pesos, reaching estimated audiences of millions. The analysis reveals a direct correlation between ad spend and the number of people impacted by these ads.
Non-Authentic Profiles and Lack of INE Oversight
Although it’s unclear if any candidacy directly controls the publication of ads, the report infers that organized campaigns involve non-authentic profiles created for the purpose of promoting specific candidacies. The illegality of this practice prevents the INE from ensuring campaign impartiality and sanctioning offending parties, despite the electoral authority having taken measures in at least one case to remove promoted content from Facebook.
Expert Opinions
Luis Fernández, director of Práctica: Laboratorio para la Democracia, emphasizes that illegal direct or indirect contracting of advertising spaces undermines fairness for other candidacies relying on their limited resources to survive the campaigns.
Daniela Arias, coordinator of Laboratorio Electoral, mentions discovering candidacies using abnormal parallel support structures that could lead to their disqualification from the electoral process.
Key Questions and Answers
- Q: What is the Observatorio Electoral Judicial? A: It’s a group of organizations monitoring judicial election processes for fairness and transparency.
- Q: What irregular practices have been identified? A: Candidates have engaged in paid advertising on traditional and digital media, used fake polls, and leveraged coordinated efforts with influencer accounts.
- Q: Why are these practices concerning? A: These irregularities create an unfair advantage for certain candidacies, undermining the integrity of the electoral process.
- Q: How does this affect the INE’s ability to ensure fairness? A: The illegality of these practices prevents the INE from monitoring and sanctioning offending parties, thus compromising campaign impartiality.
- Q: What actions will the Observatorio Electoral Judicial take? A: They will denounce those engaging in these illegal practices, as evidenced by their findings.
Context and Additional Information
During judicial campaigns, candidates primarily reached mass audiences through personal social media use. However, regulations stipulate that each candidate must register their efforts with the INE, and paid services to boost reach to broader audiences are prohibited. These prohibited services allow for targeting specific demographics based on age, location, or interests, which is a significant concern highlighted by the Observatorio Electoral Judicial.
