MEXICO CITY, June 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Mexico's Supreme Court is poised to be dominated by judges considered close to the governing party, according to preliminary results from the world's first vote.

Sunday's election followed highly contentious reforms that make Mexico the only country to let voters choose all of their judges, including Supreme Court justices.

President Claudia Sheinbaum has defended the election as a democratic means to overhaul the corruption-plagued court system. But critics warned it would erode judicial independence, leave more judges vulnerable to criminal influence and consolidate the ruling party's power.

As officials tallied the few ballots cast in an election marked by low turnout, results for the nine Supreme Court seats trickled in first.

The new top court will be comprised of five women and four men, most of whom were backed by the ruling Morena party and Congress, according to provisional results announced Monday night with 87 percent of ballots counted.

The preliminary results also showed that Hugo Aguilar, a member of the Mixtec Indigenous group and former advisor to the Zapatista guerrilla movement, was on track to head the top court.

The constitutional law specialist was leading over Lenia Batres, a Supreme Court justice and member of the Morena party.

The election is the result of constitutional amendments proposed by former president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador who found several of his flagship initiatives stymied by the courts.

Congress, dominated by Morena party lawmakers, fast-tracked the judicial overhaul despite concerns that it would undermine checks and balances.

According to the National Electoral Institute, only around 13 percent of the approximately 100 million registered voters took part in the judicial poll.

More than 880 federal judge posts were up for grabs, as well as hundreds of local judicial and magistrate positions.

Another election for the remainder of the judicial positions will be held in 2027.