Mexicans Elect Scientist, Former Mexico City Major as First Female President

After more than 200 years of history, Mexico has elected its first female president.

Scientist and former Mexico City major Claudia Sheinbaum is officially Mexico’s president-elect. Sheinbaum secured a victory following what was regarded as the country’s biggest election, garnering more than 60% of the vote. Her closest rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, received between 26.6% and 28.6% of the votes.

Sheinbaum will be taking over the presidency from current leader Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), who belongs to the same political party and won the presidency back in 2018, also with an overwhelming majority.

Unlike AMLO, however, Sheinbaum is positioned to lead what analysts describe as a “super government.” A coallition of her party (Morena) and affiliated political projects now hold a majority in both Congress and the Senate. This will allow Sheinbaum’s policies (many of which seem to follow her predecessor’s footsteps) to be implemented with little to no resistance from the opposition.

Sheinbaum has pledged to consolidate AMLO’s policy of minimum wage incresaes. From 2018 to 2024, minimum wage in Mexico gradually climbed, year over year, by 120%. Though a popular policy, it has been received with criticism too. Detractors argue that wage increases offered only temporary relief without adressing Mexico’s deeper systemic issues.

Analysts note that the redistribution of public funds under AMLO’s leadership came at the expense of several critical social programs, including full-time schools, daycare centers and free public healthcare.

A primary focus of Sheinbaum’s presidency will be to tackle Mexico’s security crisis. She  vowed to take a hard stance against drug gangs and improve national security.

Despite AMLO’s pledge to ease Mexico’s security problem, his term has been the bloodies on record for the country, recording 186,000 homicides as of May of 2024.