Entre la certeza y la discrecionalidad, la mejor ruta es la ley

Abstract

Reviewing the arguments in which the petition for a election recount was based and those in which the Electoral Tribunal of the Federal Judiciary’s ruling to reject the vote recount, the note suggests that the controversy regarding the 2006 Mexican presidential election’s outcome lies, among other causes, in the disagreement of two different conceptions of the legal framework and of the election authorities’ role. The “juridization” of the rules for electoral competition has contributed to the Mexican democratic transition, nevertheless, this text underscores that the prevailing legal model, based mainly on detailed legal rules and procedures, may not instill the perception of legitimacy expected in unanticipated events, which could be avoided by laying down, in certain cases, guidelines or open norms that allow the decision-makers to consider context specific factors.