The president magistrate of the Electoral Tribunal of the Judiciary of the Federation (TEPJF), Mónica Soto Fregoso, declared that this institution neither has nor will ever have a political role, but is responsible for guaranteeing legality. She emphasized that the TEPJF does not seek to balance power, but to ensure that the will of the citizens is reflected at the polls, according to an official statement.
"At the Electoral Tribunal, we do not support and will not support political positions," she underscored during a solemn session for the 2023-2024 Work Report of the Xalapa Regional Court. She warned that those who attempt to delegitimize the work, capacity, and independence of the institution's staff are mistaken. Recently, the Electoral Tribunal has faced criticism and even direct attacks. In light of this, she committed to respecting the diversity of opinions, political pluralism, and freedom of expression.
In his words, the magistrate of the Superior Chamber Felipe Fuentes Barrera stated that democracy is a right of the peoples and not a concession from groups or institutions. He highlighted that the TEPJF has overcome resistance against actions that seek to interrupt the electoral process.
"We work for the defense of political-electoral rights and the preservation of the integrity of the electoral system," emphasized the electoral magistrate. Regarding the president of the Xalapa Regional Court, magistrate Eva Barrientos Zepeda, she reported that work in the III Plurinominal Circumscription, which includes Veracruz, Tabasco, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Campeche, Quintana Roo, and Yucatán, covers 20% of the country's population.
During her work report, Barrientos Zepeda mentioned that jurisdictional activities have focused on defending the political-electoral rights of a multicultural population that includes a percentage of indigenous, Afro-descendant, and sexual diversity individuals. She highlighted the importance of judging with a gender perspective, given that the entities under her jurisdiction occupy the top spots in the National Registry of Persons Sanctioned for Political Violence against Women for Gender Reasons.
