Overview of Campaign Spending
As Mexico’s judicial election campaigns near their conclusion, candidates for both federal and local positions have reported spending at least 362 million pesos, according to the National Electoral Institute (INE). Among these candidates, those vying for positions in the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) have spent the most.
Breakdown of Spending
- Total spending reported: 362 million 33,489 pesos by 7,767 candidates
- Federal candidates: 303 million 996,250.41 pesos (83.7%)
- Local candidates: 58 million 37,239.39 pesos (16.3%)
- SCJN candidates: 238 million 951,727.96 pesos (66% of total)
- Average spending per SCJN candidate: over 3.7 million pesos, more than double the INE’s spending limit of 1.468 million pesos
- Reported income for SCJN candidates: 25 million 450,023 pesos
Consequences of Exceeding Spending Limits
According to the INE’s guidelines, exceeding personal spending limits set by the General Council will result in an infraction. Candidates must finance their campaigns with personal resources, and the use of private third-party resources—directly or indirectly, in cash or in kind—is prohibited. This includes funds from raffles, lotteries, donations, or any other resource-gathering method.
Additionally, public resources in cash or kind from federal, local, or municipal governments, as well as executive, legislative, and judicial powers, and public autonomous bodies, are also banned. During campaigns, candidates for judicial positions can only spend on printed advertising, content production and editing for social media, media training courses, content creation for social media, transportation expenses, and accommodation and meal costs within their jurisdiction.
Campaign Events
The INE has recorded 83,865 campaign events:
- 59% (49,464) are federal-level events
- 41% (34,401) are state-level events
Federal-level candidates held over 24,000 events, with magistrate circuit and appeals court candidates accounting for the majority. State-level candidates in Tamaulipas (9,650), Chihuahua (4,471), and the City of Mexico (3,343) reported the most events.
Monitoring and Compliance
To ensure compliance with obligations and the accuracy of reported information, the INE’s Technical Fiscalization Unit conducts monitoring to identify reportable expenses. As of May 16, they have identified:
- 208 print media publications possibly paid for by judicial candidates
- 6,154 online publications
- 69 cases of public street advertising
Citizen Complaints
There have been 63 citizen complaints against candidates, including:
- 7 for prohibited entity contributions
- 5 for prohibited in-kind contributions
- 2 for unreported income
- 44 for unreported expenses
- 3 for unreported events
- 2 for events benefiting another candidate
Key Questions and Answers
- What is the total amount spent by candidates in Mexico’s judicial elections? At least 362 million pesos have been reported by 7,767 candidates competing for federal and local positions.
- Who has spent the most? Candidates for the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) have spent 238 million pesos, accounting for 66% of the total reported spending.
- What are the consequences of exceeding spending limits? Exceeding personal spending limits set by the INE’s General Council results in an infraction.
- How many campaign events have been recorded by the INE? The INE has registered 83,865 campaign events, with federal-level events making up 59% and state-level events comprising the remaining 41%.
- What types of expenses are allowed for judicial candidates? Candidates can spend on printed advertising, content production and editing for social media, media training courses, content creation for social media, transportation expenses, accommodation and meal costs within their jurisdiction, and more.
