Background

The origin of the political groups in Mexico goes back to 1970. In the time in which the figure of National Political Associations was created, whose main purpose was to complement the system of political parties in the area of ideas (non electoral).

In this regard, article 51 of the Federal Law of Political Organizations and Electoral Processes (LOPPE) issued on 1977, defined the National Political Associations as:

“...forms of political association, capable of transforming jointly or separately into political parties, which contribute to the development of a political opinion that is better informed and with a wider ideological density”.

The electoral reform of 1990, which substantially modified the model of the Mexican electoral institutions, also disappeared this figure. Notwithstanding, it reappeared in 1996 during the electoral reform known as final and it was included at the Federal Code of Electoral Institutions and Procedures (COFIPE).

In the context of this reform, the basis for the expedition of an Electoral Code for the Federal District (CEDF) were established, by virtue of the commitment assumed by the federal government to deepen the political reform of the Federal District. This law, inspired in the federal referral, in its version of 1999 as in the one published on January 10, 2008, sets the guidelines for the appearance of a similar scheme of local political associations, although, as it is explained later, with significant differences.

Legal framework

The CEDF rules the existence of Local Political Associations and the participation of the national and local political parties in the electoral process of local character, through the concept of Political Associations.

In its article 15 it establish that:

“... the name of Political Association refers to a group of citizens that pursuant to the terms of article 9 of the Political Constitution of the Mexican United States are gathered to participate in the political issues of the country. The following figures are recognized as Political Associations:

I. National Political Parties;

II. Local Political Associations; and

III. Local Political Parties.

The Political Associations form entities of public interest, with their own legal capacity and their own patrimony, which have the rights and prerogatives that are established by the Political Constitution of the Mexican United States, the Government Statute of the Federal District and this Code and which are subject to the obligations set forth by those same laws.

An important part of the provisions of the CEDF are related to the local political associations. In fact, the Third Book, Titles Third and Fourth, that take care of this issue, contains 14 articles that directly make reference to the local political associations, and in 5 more articles they are imposed with obligations related to the transparency, based on their relationship with the concept Political Associations.

On its article 67 the Code sets forth that:

“The Local Political Associations are forms of citizen association that participate in the development of the democratic life, by means of the political culture sustained by the tolerance, respect to the law, the creation of better informed public opinion and which will be means to promote the civic education of the inhabitants of the Federal District.”

The spirit of this law in the Federal District is to widen the institutional channels of citizen participation in the political development of the capital of the country. For such reason, rights and obligations are granted to the political associations as entities of public interest, without this meaning that they are inserted at the elections focused in reaching positions of political power.

Registry, rights and obligations of the APL’s

The registry of the Local Political Associations is an attribution of the General Council of the Electoral Institute of the Federal District. In this regard, since 1999 40 associations have been registered.

In accordance to article 70 of the CEDF, the application for registry is carried out between the months of February and April of every year prior to the year in which local elections are carried out. It is important to mention, notwithstanding, that this mandate exists since the modifications of the CEDF, published on May 15, 2003, reason for which previously some associations were registered during the years that failed with that condition. Following, the description of the associations that obtained their registry between 1999 and 2007:

Local Political Associations registered at the Federal District

If it is considered that starting from the year 2003 the political local associations have the right to obtain public financing, it attracts the attention that in 2004 as well as in 2007, the registry has been reduced to the equal of the fourth part of the level of 1999 and to a third part of the registries obtained in 2001 and 2002.

In 1999, a bit more than 50 applications of registry were received. Notwithstanding, the average of the other years was approximately 35.

For an organization to be registered as Local Political Association must comply with the following requirements:

• Prepare a declaration of principles and, in accordance to them, their program of action and the by-laws that rules their activities;

• Have a minimum of affiliates, which results from the 0.3% of the citizens registered at the Registry of voters of the Federal District that has been used in the ordinary elections immediately previous to the filing of the application, in at least half of the boroughs, and the organization must have at least 200 affiliates registered at the Registry of voters of the each borough;

• Present copies of the records of individual and voluntary affiliation of its members, where the name, last name, address, activity, signature and code of the Voting ID for each one of the interested citizens is evidenced;

• Secure that its affiliates are not part of another Political Association, and that their directors are not directors of any political party or hold office of popular election.

Additionally, among the obligations of the local political associations, is the obligation of acting within the law, in accordance to the principles of the democratic State; respecting the free political participation of the other Political Associations and the citizen rights; establishing a proper identification by means of their name, emblem, and color or colors that identify it and differentiate it from other Political Associations, which must be extent of religious, racial allusion or to the national symbols.

With the purpose of avoiding the practice of corporate and favoritism schemes in the operation of these organizations, the law sets forth that in it’s by laws must clearly establish that the affiliation of their members is individual, free and pacific.

In addition to the foregoing, the APL’s must clearly express the procedures to integrate and renew periodically the directive entities, as well as the functions, authorities and obligations of such entities. The foregoing is with the purpose to avoid internal conditions of authoritarianism and vertical or central decision making.

An additional element that seeks to secure the validity of the organization or its active insertion in the society is related to the obligation of presenting to the Institute, in the month of August of the year previous to the budgetary exercise, an annual program of activities of promotion of the democratic political culture addressed to the population of the Federal District. The General Council of the IEDF will approve the programs that best comply with the activities mentioned in order to include them in the budget project that the Institute present to the Legislative Assembly of the Federal District.

In the activities program, the Associations must establish the way they will achieve their purposes expressed at their Declaration of Principles; proposing policies in order to participate in the solution of problems of the Federal District; and to ideologically and politically form their affiliates instilling them respect to the contrary and to their rights in the political struggle.

On the other hand, the General Council of the Electoral Institute of the Federal District can carry out, at the moment it deems necessary, the verification of fundamental aspects for the existence of an association, such as the maintenance of a minimum number of affiliates.

It must be reminded that the political associations do not face the surveillance that competing at an election means, and to obtain a minimum of votes to maintain their registry. Notwithstanding, the following are cause for a Local Political Association to lose its registry, and thus, its extinction:

• Not complying with the requirements that it obtained its registry with;

• Not complying with the obligations that the CEDF establish;

• Being dissolved by its members;

• Merger with other Political Associations;

• Destine the public financing to other purposes;

• Not presenting in a recurrent manner the annual reports of activities and of the origin and expense of their resources;

• Not presenting to the IEDF the program of promotion of democratic political culture.

It is important to mention that the APL that loses its registry can request it again another ordinary election takes place.

The referred events are established by the CEDF approved in January of 2008. Previously the procedures of verification and surveillance were carried out in accordance to the resolutions adopted by the Commissions of Political Associations (CAP) and the Commissions of Surveillance (CF), that are permanent Commissions of the General Council of the Institute. It was in such manner that two APL’s lost their registry in 2004.

It must be highlighted that it is a right of the APL’s to transform into political parties that are not entitled to participate in the local Electoral process, as a difference of what happens with the national political associations, which are even entitled to present candidates to offices of popular election, by means of the participation agreements that could be entered with the political parties.

As part of the benefits maintaining their registry, the local political associations can use the radio times, pursuant to the terms approved by the General Council of the Electoral Institute of the Federal District.

Regarding the public financing for the Local Political Associations, article 74 of the CEDF sets forth that:

“The General Council will destine an annual fund equal to 2% of the direct public financing to sustain the ordinary permanent activities designated for the Political Parties of the Federal District...”

This financing is distributed in the following manner:

• 50% by equal parts among all the ALP’s with registry, and

• The remaining 50% will be destined for the application of programs of promotion of democratic political culture.

It is important to mention that the maximum limit that each Political Association can receive individually will be the equal to the 0.2% of the total public financing for the Political Parties.

On the other hand, article 72 of the same law sets forth that such associations enjoy the fiscal regime set forth for the political parties, such as the exemption of local taxes and fees related to raffles and draws, what is related to the income deriving from the donations in money or assets and of the other provisions of the CEDF.

Following, a summary of the set of rights and obligations of the local political associations established by the law, as well as the comparison with what regards to the political parties.

As it can be observed, as regards the obligations of the electoral law it grants a similar treatment to the local political associations compared to the treatment received by the political parties; with some differences, clearly, in the allusion to the issues regarding the electoral campaigns. Notwithstanding, in the area of rights, the differences imply substantial aspects that evidence the legal nature and importance of a party regarding an association.

Because the political associations of the Federal District have the political limitations that are established by the CEDF: they cannot participate in the local Electoral process and they do not have representatives before the electoral organizations.

Likewise, even though they have financing, said support conditions its operations in the measure that it is a reduced fund of resources, and on the other hand, the proliferation of the APL’s makes it materially impossible for one of them to even come close to the 0.2% maximum in which they can participate in the distribution of this fund.

Registration process of the local political associations

In terms of the provisions of article 70, the period of registry of local political associations is between February 1st and April 30 of the year following the elections.

It is important to mention that no later than July 31 the applicant associations must evidence that they comply with the requirements for granting the registry that, pursuant to article 68 of the CEDF are the following:

• Prepare a declaration of principles, a program of activities and the by-laws that rules their activities;

• Having a minimum of affiliates equal to 0.3% of the citizens registered at the Registry of voters of the Federal District used in the immediately pervious ordinary elections in at least half of the Boroughs, and they shall have a minimum of 200 affiliates registered at the Registry of voters of the each Boroughs;

• Present copies of the records of individual and voluntary affiliation of its members, where the name, last name, address, activity, signature and code of the Voting ID for each one of the interested parties is evidenced; and

• Secure that its affiliates are not part of another Political Association, and that their directors are not directors of any political party or hold office of popular election.

In general terms, the route that is followed by the registry procedure of the political associations is the following:

Registration Procedure for the Local Political Associations