This editorial by Bernardo Bátiz V. originally appeared in the October 6, 2025 edition of La Jornada, Mexico’s premier left wing daily newspaper.
Invited by jurists from Nuevo León and fellow Morena activists, I was at the Monterrey Institute of Technology last weekend to discuss judicial reform, which, as we all know, was a project presented by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador a couple of weeks before the end of his term.
The reform was a political shock; its implementation was the responsibility of the Permanent Constituent Assembly and under the watchful and judicious eye of the President of the Republic, Dr. Claudia Sheinbaum. The Constituent Assembly determined that, from now on, those who administer justice—ministers, magistrates, and judges—must assume their positions through direct, secret, and popular vote. I also share that, in addition to that presentation at the Tec, which motivated my trip, I was invited to another, more political than academic, but with the same objective: to explain the reasons for and potential effects of the reform of the judiciary. Those who invited me constitute a group with which I have been involved in politics for nearly 20 years.
Since 2007, at AMLO’s urging and invitation, citizen groups opposing the old regime have formed throughout the country under the name “Gobierno Legítimo” (Legitimate Government). It was my job to seek out and gather citizens from that northern state, primarily from its capital, but also from other municipalities in northeastern Mexico. I can’t help but mention Montemorelos, Cerralvo, Guadalupe, and China, and I’d better stop, because I’d fill the space for my contribution with the names of unforgettable places.
What I’m recording is a meeting at a house in Guadalupe, owned by citizen Aurelio Arenas, which we know as The Historic House, because national leader López Obrador attended it on several occasions. A commemorative plaque was unveiled there, and it was there that the Morena State Committee was formed. We would leave the house to tour the state whenever necessary, as militants joined the “Legitimate Government.” At the meetings, there is a sense of friendship and commitment to the Fourth Transformation, but also democratic conviction and love for Mexico. The group’s theoretical basis is that the people are sovereign and, therefore, the one who governs, through direct popular vote and, of course, informed vote, under the oft-repeated motto that “only the people save the people.”
Nothing could be more consistent with the two concepts that give rise to the word demos, meaning “people,” and cratos, meaning “government”; that is, government of the people and for the people. But on this occasion, which I witnessed and participated in, there was more than joy: great respect, fraternal coexistence, and on this occasion, enlivened by a regional dance group that bears precisely that name: Alegría.
The meeting was attended by a few children, many young people, but also by a group of older men and women in traditional costumes, who performed the regional dances that liven up their celebrations. They are elderly or approaching old age, but they retain vitality, conviction, and the certainty that political reason is on their side and that they are fighting with a smile on their faces for social justice and a democratic government. Their spirit is jovial and joyful.
Inspired by the political and friendly meeting I participated in, I congratulate the group and thank them for accepting and supporting me in understanding the invisible link between the words “democracy” and “joy” that give this collaboration its title. The conviction I express in La Jornada is that the people opened their eyes, trusted their organization and their convictions, and directly exercised the rights and powers granted to them by the Constitution and the laws. While much blood was shed and much pain was felt in the previous great transformations—”Independence,” “Reform,” and “Mexican Revolution”—in this current one, the “4T,” things happened differently and through voting.
Joy and democracy are not mutually exclusive; they are two sides of the same coin, and today I can speak of both concepts side by side. Democracy is government by the people, but increasingly by a joyful people, who, without diminishing their responsibilities, celebrate, as happened just a few hours ago, at the large gathering in the capital’s Zócalo convened by Dr. Sheinbaum, with enthusiasm, seriousness, and without shirking responsibilities, shoulder to shoulder and shared convictions.
Not only was overthrowing the old neoliberal regime a great feat; perhaps the most important thing was that this historic change was achieved primarily through great conviction, sacrifice, political work, and organization; but something deeper was possible: the struggle was never overshadowed by hatred, resentment, or violent confrontations; the miracle was demonstrating that democracy is not at odds with either joy or brotherhood.
Joy & Democracy
October 6, 2025October 6, 2025
Democracy is government by the people, but increasingly by a joyful people, who, without diminishing their responsibilities, celebrate, as happened at the large gathering in the Zócalo convened by Dr. Sheinbaum
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Finance officials have maintained, and continue to maintain, 6 year term after 6 year term, their maxim: financial & fiscal stability comes first, in accordance with the creed of the rating agencies.
President Sheinbaum’s First Year Address in Mexico City’s Zócalo
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Transcript of the nearly hour-long speech commemorating her first year in office, as Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum highlighted her government’s signature achievements. to a crowd of over 400,000 people.
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