Mexico president defends judicial overhaul as US concerns mount

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and his elected successor defended their proposed judicial overhaul on Monday, as a major U.S. business lobby added its voice to concerns over the reform's impact on investment.

A committee in Mexico's lower house of Congress was expected to take an initial vote on the plan, which includes electing all judges by popular vote, later on Monday. If it approves the measure as expected, it will then be taken up by the full body, possibly by early September.

Asked if he thought the United States was interfering in Mexico's domestic affairs, Lopez Obrador answered: "Yes."

U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar on Thursday labeled the reform a threat to Mexican democracy, arguing it would expose its judiciary to the influence of organized crime while also putting the U.S.-Mexico trade relationship at risk.

The United States and Mexico are each other's top trading partners, and U.S. companies have increasingly opened factories in the neighboring country as they seek to move supply chains from China closer to home.

In a statement later on Monday, the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico argued trade requires "legal certainty, judicial transparency and clarity," as it expressed the concerns of the private companies it represents.

"We see risks to (the judiciary's) independence, a potential step backwards in the professionalization of the specialized judiciary, higher costs, a reduction in the judicial system's efficacy, and the generation of uncertainty for investment," the business group said.

"When multiple voices add their voice to a choir of warnings, it is prudent to pay attention," the group added.

Lopez Obrador emphasized on Monday the need to respect nations' sovereignty while assuring that U.S. relations remained friendly.

Nothing "rational" could cause a break in the bilateral trade relationship, Lopez Obrador said.

In a press conference to present the next head of Mexico's state oil firm on Monday, President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, who takes office in October, emphasized the judicial reform aimed to improve democracy and had been carefully drafted to ensure candidates are legitimate.

"We will always have a dialogue with our trade partners such as the United States, but we don't need to discuss everything," she said. "Some issues are up to Mexican citizens."

(Reporting by Ana Isabel Martinez and Sarah Morland; Editing by Cassandra Garrison, Cynthia Osterman and Jamie Freed)