MEXICO CITY — Mexico held its first judicial elections Sunday, stirring controversy and sowing confusion among voters still struggling to understand a process set to transform the country’s court system.

Voter turnout seemed to lag significantly, something experts warned of in the lead up to the historic elections due to the mind-boggling array of unfamiliar choices and the fact that voting for judges is new. Some voting centers throughout the country opened with only a trickle of people and small lines forming throughout the day.

While some voters said they felt pushed to vote in an election they felt would determine the fate of the country’s democracy, many more expressed a deep sense of apathy, citing disillusionment due to decades of corruption and lack of basic information about the vote.

Mexico’s ruling party, Morena, overhauled the court system late last year, fueling protests and criticism that the reform is an attempt by those in power to seize on their political popularity to gain control of the branch of government until now out of their reach.

— The Associated Press