The president-elect, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, is set to announce her presidential cabinet next week.
In her first press conference at the Treasury Hall in the National Palace after meeting with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, the holder of the Fourth Transformation’s baton, indicated that this would mark the transition between the outgoing and incoming administrations.
Juan Ramón de la Fuente was recently appointed as the transition coordinator; however, no other names have been disclosed.
Sheinbaum also mentioned her intention to incorporate the social programs proposed during her campaign into the President’s reform package: support for women aged 60 to 64 and scholarships for public elementary school students.
Additionally, she highlighted that the outgoing government is leaving healthy finances and emphasized the need for a detailed discussion in Open Parliament on legal and constitutional reform initiatives.
What Social Programs Are Being Integrated?
After meeting with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo announced an agreed-upon legislative agenda that elevates two programs to constitutional status and opens discussions on judicial reform.
In a press conference at the Treasury Hall, she stated that the initiatives to be added include the program for women aged 60 to 64 before the universal pension for senior citizens and scholarships for public elementary school students.
Regarding judicial reform, she proposed conducting a consultation: "He [López Obrador] was in complete agreement it is something we both concur on, that in all cases there should be a broad consultation over the coming months, before the new Congress, the new Chamber of Deputies, and the new Senate are seated. This discussion should take place across the entire country," she pointed out.
“For instance, in the case of judicial reform, it shouldn’t just start with the Permanent Commission’s discussion now but should also involve the bar associations, law faculties, the Ministers themselves, Magistrates, and the Judicial Branch’s workers. This discussion should be widespread over these months to inform, for example, how many district judges there are—few people know the number of district judges in the federal country and how many magistrates there are. The reform should be well-known, and this discussion should be opened. We both agreed on this approach,” she noted.
The president-elect also said another reform involves the Issste Law, mainly to increase teacher pension payments.
“It’s a demand that was raised everywhere I visited. Additionally, he [López Obrador] mentioned that it’s something the CNTE teachers have been discussing with him—the issue of reelection and constitutional reform of the Judicial Branch,” she added.
For the judicial reform, she said dialogue will be coordinated with the Interior Secretary, Luisa María Alcalde, and current members of the Permanent Commission.
Meeting with Joe Biden’s Delegation today
Stating that finances are healthy, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo announced a meeting with the delegation visiting President Joe Biden at the transition offices.
"Tomorrow, we will receive a delegation visiting President Biden. I will welcome them at the campaign headquarters. We might provide information on the meeting and other topics tomorrow," she said.
Healthy Finances
Regarding the budget for the transition process, Sheinbaum Pardo said López Obrador is leaving healthy finances.
"The president is leaving us with good finances, good public finances. The country's economy is doing very well, not just public finances. He is leaving us in a good financial position. And you know that the next government’s Secretary of Finance and Public Credit is Rogelio, Dr. Rogelio Ramírez de la O, the current secretary, which makes things much easier moving forward," she said.
When questioned about market volatility, the former Mexico City mayor commented that she discussed the solidity of the Mexican economy with López Obrador and the importance of widely discussing judicial reform.
She dismissed concerns about peso volatility: "No, I don’t think there will be an impact. This process will open, and approval will come in due course."
Sheinbaum Pardo was willing to dialogue with autonomous organizations and the Judicial Branch union.
On other topics, she did not clarify if she would reside in the National Palace and mentioned maintaining the same security arrangements.