MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s Senate has been paralyzed for a second day as opposition legislators fight the governing party’s attempt to hold a secret vote on upholding the firing of a key prosecutor.
A large number of legislators from the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, the PRI, didn’t show up for a scheduled vote Wednesday. With only 45 senators present, the Senate recessed until Thursday.
A senator from the left-center Democratic Revolution Party says the PRI is resisting an open vote on firing electoral crimes prosecutor Santiago Nieto. Sen. Luis Sanchez says that has paralyzed the Senate, which has to approve the 2018 budget soon.
The administration says the prosecutor was fired for revealing parts of an ongoing investigation. Opponents say the PRI is trying to blunt an investigation into possible illegal campaign finances.