Published on: Monday, January 2, 2023

Mexico’s Supreme Court made history Monday when it voted a woman to head the tribunal for the first time (article available here).

The chief justice is called the president of the court. Mexico’s Supreme Court holds elections for a new president every four years.

The court’s 11 justices voted 6-5 to place Norma Lucía Piña Hernández as chief justice for a term of four years. Piña will also serve as the head of Mexico’s Federal Judiciary Council during her term. 

Four of Mexico’s current 11 Supreme Court justices are women, and all have been appointed within the last seven years.

The first woman on the Mexican Supreme Court was María Cristina Salmorán de Tamayo (1918-1993) who served starting in 1961 — which was 20 years before Sandra Day O’Connor became the first woman on the U.S. Supreme Court.