International

Reverse for Sheinbaum with 13% participation in Mexico’s judicial election

Mexico held this Sunday the “historic” election to the judiciary and began the long count of results, whose final calculation will not be known for another two weeks, but which points to a participation of just 13%, in a notable setback to the president, Claudia Sheinbaum, promoter of the initiative.

“From a sample of randomly selected sectional boxes (voting centers) in front of public notaries, the results obtained by the specialists yielded an estimated result of citizen participation of 12.57% to 13.32% of participation,” said Guadalupe Taddei, president of the National Electoral Institute (INE), in a message to the media.

The elections, in which judges, magistrates and ministers were elected by direct vote both at the federal level and in 19 states of the country, represent the most profound change to the judiciary in the last three decades, so the low participation of the electorate is a defeat for Sheinbaum, who had called for a “masss” vote.

The president estimated to reach 20% participation, to exceed 17.77% of the mandate revocation consultation carried out by former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (2018-2024) in 2022.

However, in a message on his social networks minutes after the INE reported the participation data, Sheinbaum, who came to power in October 2024, celebrated the day as a triumph.

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“The historic election of the judiciary of June 1, 2025 has been a success. About 13 million Mexicans went out to exercise for the first time in history who the ministers, magistrates and judges should be,” he said.

Sheinbaum remarked that “the current judiciary has been responsible for favoring members of organized crime” and assured that it is plagued by “nepotism.”

He celebrated, on the other hand, that Sunday’s election day was “transparent, the austere campaigns and the free vote”.

“If we wanted to change the Judiciary to control it, what would be the point of making a universal choice? We had better change the Constitution to put ministers in the mode (…) Yes, Mexico is the most democratic country in the world,” he said.

The election day, in which almost 100 million citizens were called to the polls, took place “in an orderly manner” and without significant incidents, according to the INE.

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The American country had its first popular election to renew 881 federal judicial positions, including the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN), in addition to electing hundreds of local positions.

The process has been questioned by academic sectors, international organizations and judicial associations due to the complexity and lack of information among voters, as well as the risk of the infiltration of organized crime into the judiciary.

International

IEA warns Middle East conflict could spark worst energy crisis in decades

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East could trigger the worst energy crisis in decades, warned Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), who described the situation as “very serious.”

Speaking at the National Press Club in Canberra, Birol compared the current scenario to the oil crises of the 1970s, noting that during those events the world lost around five million barrels of oil per day in each crisis.

“Today, we have lost 11 million barrels per day—more than the two major oil shocks combined,” he said.

The Turkish economist referred to the conflict that began on February 28, following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran, which have significantly disrupted global energy markets and driven oil prices higher.

Birol warned that the global economy is facing a “very, very serious threat” and expressed hope that the crisis will be resolved soon.

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“No country will be immune to the effects of this crisis if it continues in this direction. Global efforts are urgently needed,” he emphasized.

International

Colombian Air Force Hercules plane crashes during takeoff with troops onboard

A Lockheed C-130 Hercules operated by the Colombian Air Force was involved in a “tragic accident” while taking off from Puerto Leguízamo, in the Putumayo department of southern Colombia, as it was transporting troops, Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez reported on Monday.

The minister stated on social media that the exact number of victims and the causes of the crash have not yet been determined. He also extended his condolences to the families affected and urged the public to avoid speculation until official information is confirmed.

“This is a deeply painful event for the country. Our prayers are with the victims and their families,” Sánchez said, adding that emergency protocols have been activated and an investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, President Gustavo Petro expressed hope that there would be no fatalities in what he described as a “horrific accident that should not have happened.”

Petro also highlighted ongoing efforts to modernize the country’s air fleet and reiterated the need to acquire new helicopters and transport aircraft to strengthen military mobility, particularly in remote regions.

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According to local media reports, approximately 110 soldiers were on board the aircraft. So far, at least 20 injured military personnel have been rescued.

International

Paris prosecutors alert U.S. over alleged deepfake strategy linked to Elon Musk

The Paris Prosecutor’s Office said on Saturday that it had alerted authorities in the United States over suspicions that tech entrepreneur Elon Musk may have encouraged the spread of sexualized deepfake content on the social platform X to artificially boost the company’s valuation.

According to prosecutors, the controversy surrounding explicit AI-generated videos—reportedly linked to Grok, the platform’s artificial intelligence system—may have been deliberately triggered to increase the market value of X and X AI.

The office added that the alleged strategy could be tied to the planned June 2026 public listing of a new entity formed through the merger of SpaceX and X AI.

French authorities said they contacted the U.S. Department of Justice as well as legal representatives at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) earlier this week to share their concerns.

Responding on X in French to a report about the case, Musk referred to French prosecutors using an offensive term.

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When contacted, X’s legal representative in France did not immediately comment.

Grok, the platform’s AI system, has its own account on X, allowing users to interact with it or request content generation. For a period, users were able to tag the bot in posts to generate or edit images, a feature that may have facilitated the spread of such material.