Congress discusses electoral reform to modify municipal council integration

The local Congress is set to discuss a reform to the state Electoral Code that will modify the integration of municipal councils. The new proposal moves away from a controversial alphabetical criterion that would have divided municipalities into blocks to alternate female candidacies. Instead, the reform proposes adjusting council composition based on population ranges.

Under the new scheme, municipalities with fewer than 20,000 inhabitants will have four majority relative councilors and three proportional representation councilors. Those with 20,000 to 50,000 inhabitants will have five and four, respectively, while municipalities with more than 50,000 residents will have eight and seven. The reform also seeks to eliminate the first minority syndic position. These changes would apply to municipal governments taking office on September 5, 2027.