Reverse of plan B: the TEPJF orders the reinstatement of Edmundo Jacobo at the INE

The Electoral Tribunal of the Federal Judiciary (TEPJF) ordered the provisional restitution of the Executive Secretary of the National Electoral Institute (INE), Edmond James.

This after the Ninth Collegiate Administrative Court granted the official a provisional suspension against the order to remove him from his post, raised in the case. section 17 transitory of Electoral “Plan B”.

One of the arguments that allowed Edmundo Jacobo to return to the electorate was that the executive secretary had been appointed to the period from February 2020 to February 2026and there is no reason to cease his duties.

Although the measure obtained allows the official to continue his work at the INE, it is not definitive and could be challenged.

And it is that after being published in the Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF), the seventeenth transitional article of the Plan B entry into force, resulting in the immediate termination of the mandate of the Executive Secretary.

Thus, and due to the changes that said area has undergone with the new package of reforms, Edmond James he was fired.

The events quickly sparked reactions within the opposition group to the current federal administration headed by the president Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO)who was also the main promoter of electoral law reforms.

Such was the case of Lorenzó Córdova, still president of the INE, who accused the action of having been carried out contrary to the Constitution. In a comment published shortly after the announcement of his partner’s departure, he wrote:

“The fear of the professionalism and rectitude of a civil servant like Edmundo Jacobo is such that the first effect of the reform, even before it comes into force, is to dismiss unconstitutionally the one who was executive secretary for 14 years and who, I’m sure, will resume this function very soon”read in a publication made on March 3 of this year.

What the INE adviser said came a day after the Federal President, López Obrador, ironically said the situation, assuring that the former adviser’s disagreement would respond to his interest in keeping his job for life (comment referring to the official’s long history at the INE).

And it is that, in case I manage to complete his term as Executive Secretary in 2026, Edmundo Jacobo will add a total of 18 years to the same position.

In this regard, Edmundo Jacobo marked the Plan B to be “a set of irregularities and illegalities” established for the benefit of the federal government. Also, in a space of Formula groupclaimed the measure was merely “an arbitrary means” to remove him from office.

In this context, INE announced that it would challenge the measure before the TEPJF after considering it a violation of the agency’s autonomy.

“The Authority subscribes to its commitment to comply with the Law; however, this decree is unconstitutional because it invades the powers of the electoral authority and contravenes the rights protected by the Constitution,” he said in a statement.