The interblock of the Frente de Todos of the Chamber of Senators already has a sufficient number of votes to approve and turn over to Deputies the bill that modifies the number of members of the Supreme Court of Justice, bringing it to five members, as established by the current legislation, to 25.
The pro-government caucus consists of 35 of its own senators, who openly supported the initiative. To these are added his usual allies: Alberto Weretilneck from Rio Negro, from Together We Are Ríos Negro; and the missionary Magdalena Solari Quintana, from the Front Renovador de la Concordia.
Furthermore, in recent months became an ally from the front of all the Rioja Peronist Ada Clara del Valle, from the Hay Futuro Argentina monobloc.
With those 38 legislators in favor of the initiative, the ruling party will easily block any maneuver by Together for Change to hinder its sanction, since The Front of All not only has the quorum, but also the absolute majority of the members of the Chamber of Senators.
However, the initiative will not begin to be studied next week since Legislators will first occupy themselves with working with their advisers, Legislative sources said.
A plenary session of the Commissions Justice and Criminal Affairs and Constitutional Affairs will study it again in the week of June 20 to 24.
This was revealed by the head of the official interbloc, Jose Mayans, who also mentioned that “something may be added” to the project and that “the issue is going to be studied” since “we are having a fundamental discussion”.
In declarations to the accredited press, the Formosan senator ruled out that in the hearings that will take place the current members of the Supreme Court of Justice are invited to give their opinion.
“It is not convenient that they come to give their opinion on an issue that concerns them,” he assured.
What does the government project propose?
Thursday afternoon the leaders of the ruling caucus, the aforementioned Mayans and Anabel Fernández Sagasti from Mendoza, presented the initiative which had originally been devised by 16 governors of the Front of Allwho exposed it to the President of the Nation, Alberto Fernández, at the end of May.
The project consists of only four items: the first of them establishes that the members of the Court will be 25.
The initiative also establishes that the Senate must agree to another 21 members proposed by the Executive Power, as established by the National Constitution, respecting the designation of the current four members: Horacio Rosatti, Juan Carlos Maqueda, Ricardo Lorenzetti and Carlos Rosenkrantz.
Since the 2006 reform, the Supreme Court functions with five members. And so she did until November 2021, when Elena Highton de Nolasco resigned from her position.
That same first article of the norm, however, announces that a future “special law” will define “the mode of organization and operation” of the Supreme Court.
The idea is that this project, which has not yet been presented, establishes certain guidelines such as the division into rooms, integration by regions and other objectives for, as the foundations of the measure presented by Mayans and Fernández Sagasti say, “to strengthen the immediacy of the files.”
Four other initiatives
The Justice and Constitutional Affairs Commissions are already studying four other bills related to the formation of the Court. all of themthey bear the signature of members of the Front of All or their allies.
The one with Neuquén Silvia Sapag raises the number of members to 15, of which no more than eight must be of the same gender, while representation by region will be sought.
The project of Adolfo Rodríguez Saá from San Luison the other hand, promotes the idea that the Court once again have nine members.
The Weretilneck from Rio Negro In April, it presented an initiative that proposes bringing the members of the highest court to 16, with federal representation (three judges per region) that guarantees and promotes gender parity.
Finally, heto Riojan Valley proposed, in the middle of last year, a Court with the same number of members, although seeking gender parity.
