MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Thursday he will directly appoint a new Supreme Court judge later in the day, after the lawmakers refused to approve one of his candidates for the job.
Lopez Obrador, in the final year of his term as president, has repeatedly sparred with the court, which he has criticized as corrupt and opposed to his agenda.
“Today we will resolve this,” the president told reporters at a regular government press conference, adding that he still needs to determine who to select.
Last month, the president offered senators three possible nominees to fill the vacancy on the court, but the upper chamber of Congress did not approve any of them, which would have required support from a two-thirds majority.
Early on Thursday morning, Lopez Obrador’s nominees for the post also failed to win the necessary support in the Senate, which enabled him to select his own judge.
The new member of the 11-member tribunal will serve a 15 year term on the high court.
(Reporting by Raul Cortes Fernandez; Editing by David Gregorio)
