Overview
- The INE's Consejo General approved the lineamientos in a divided session on Sept. 3–4, 2026, after an initial proposal failed 5–6 and a later Gómez Puga measure passed 7–4.
- The new rules require district councils to record any smooth, undoubled ballots found in recounts, set those ballots aside, and send a motivated decision to the district plenary on whether to count or annul them.
- Opposition figures and party representatives warned that treating undoubled ballots through an administrative procedure risks normalizing what they call 'embarazo' or ballot‑stuffing, and several consejeros argued the INE may be exceeding its regulatory authority.
- The debate draws on a 2025 precedent when the INE annulled results in 818 polling places and attributed 476 annulments to undoubled ballots, and tribunals have said lack of folds raises legitimate doubts about how ballots entered urns.
- INE officials say the lineamientos will be used in training for the June 6, 2027 federal and local elections, but legal and political challenges over whether administrative rules can replace legislation remain unresolved.