Claudia Sheinbaum Makes History as Mexico First Female President

Mexico has chosen its first female president! Early results indicate that Claudia Sheinbaum a climate scientist who was the mayor of Mexico City. She is likely to win the biggest election ever held in the country.

Sheinbaum won about 58.3% to 60.7% of the vote according to the Quick Count. This is a method follow by the National Electoral Institute (INE) that looks at a small group of voting ballots to estimate the overall result.

The 61 year old Claudia Sheinbaum gained a lot of support because of her friendship with the current Mexican President. Andrés Manuel López Obrador who is also a leftist. They both belong to the Morena party which helped her to win the election.

Sheinbaum is not only going to be Mexico first female president but also the first Jewish leader. Even though she doesn’t talk much about her personal background and prefers to govern without focusing on religion, she follows a left-leaning political approach that isn’t tied to any particular faith. Sheinbaum has assured that her government will serve all Mexicans equally, without any discrimination.

“Even though not everyone in Mexico supports our plans completely, we must work together peacefully and harmoniously to keep making Mexico better and fairer,” Sheinbaum said to a large gathering of supporters at Mexico City’s main square, the Zócalo, in the early hours of Monday morning.

She talked about how important it is to make history by being the first woman to become president of Mexico after 200 years of the country’s existence. “I am thankful because, after two centuries of our nation, I will be the first woman to lead Mexico,” she expressed.

Following behind Sheinbaum is the opposition candidate Xóchitl Gálvez, supported by a group of parties including the National Action (PAN), Institutional Revolutionary (PRI), and Democratic Revolution (PRD) parties. Gálvez has secured approximately 26.6% to 28.6% of the votes.

In third position Jorge Álvarez Máynez is representing the Citizens Movement party with around 9.9% to 10.8% of the votes.

According to the initial count result nearly 100 million people were eligible to vote in the presidential election and between 58.9% and 61.7% of them participated.

Obrador who is the current president and Sheinbaum’s political mentor congratulated her on her victory. In a video posted online he expressed his affection and respect for Sheinbaum. By acknowledge her significance win with a wide margin. Obrador noted that Sheinbaum will not only be Mexico first female president. Further she is the president with the highest number of votes in the Mexico history.

Sheinbaum expected victory is a significant moment for Mexico a country that has a global leader in promotion gender equality in politics. In 2019 Mexico strengthened its position by making constitutional reforms to ensure more women are elected to office. This place Mexico ahead of many other countries in terms of having women in parliament.

However, despite these advancements, Mexico still faces serious challenges regarding women’s safety. The country has alarmingly high rates of femicide, with approximately 10 women murdered every day. This underscores the ongoing struggle to ensure the safety and rights of women in Mexico.

Sheinbaum led Mexico’s largest city for five years. Until she stepped down in June last year to pursue the presidency. Outside of her political career she co-authored a report for the Nobel Prize Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. She married to Jesús María Tarriba Unger.

The legacy of López Obrador, Sheinbaum expected to continue the policies he initiate. López Obrador’s social welfare programs have popular and significantly improved the lives of many low income Mexicans. It is important to note that according to Mexico’s constitution presidents can only serve one term and cannot seek re-election.

Sheinbaum promised to uphold the policies of her predecessor, which providing pensions for all elderly citizens, offering scholarships to over 12 million students and supply free fertilizers to small scale farmers. Despite criticism of her close ties to López Obrador, she stands by her alignment with him.

Meanwhile, Mexico City’s next mayor will also be a woman from Sheinbaum’s Morena party, Clara Marina Brugada Molina. Brugada Molina received approximately 49% to 52.8% of the votes, according to the Quick Count, while the opposition candidate Santiago Taboada secured around 37.2% to 40.5% of the votes.