Polling station boards are key organs in Mexican elections, formed by common citizens through a lottery to ensure impartiality. In the 2024 presidential election, nearly 172,000 such units were deployed. Ahead of a potential electoral reform, the need to preserve their neutral integration is emphasized.
The National Electoral Institute (INE) consists of various organs, such as the General Council, the General Executive Board, and local and district councils. However, the most critical organ during the election day are the polling station boards, which multiply by tens of thousands on voting day. These boards receive and count citizens' votes, an essential task for the legality of the process.
For the 2024 presidential election, around 172,000 polling stations were set up, staffed not by professionals but by ordinary citizens. According to Article 82, numeral 1, of the General Law of Electoral Institutions and Procedures, each board includes a president, a secretary, two scrutineers, and three general substitutes; in cases of popular consultations, an extra scrutineer is added.
The integration relies on a random procedure: the INE's General Council selects two consecutive months from the calendar for the draw, and the 300 district boards extract at least 50 citizens per electoral section from the voter lists. This method aims for impartiality.
Historically, during the PRI's dominance, these boards were controlled by party committees, leading to predictable outcomes. Changes in their formation have driven democratic progress. In the context of the announced electoral reform, warnings are issued against proposals that could assign roles to groups like the 'siervos de la nación,' which would threaten neutrality. It is crucial to encourage selected citizens to participate in this civic duty, often declined.
