Claudia Sheinbaum became Mexico’s first female president on Tuesday, marking a historic moment in the country’s over 200 years of independence.
The 62-year-old ex-mayor of Mexico City and lifelong leftist ran on a platform of maintaining and advancing the key projects of her mentor, former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
During the four months from her election to inauguration, she maintained her stance by supporting López Obrador on various issues, both significant and trivial. However, Sheinbaum is quite distinct; she enjoys data and lacks López Obrador’s friendly and familiar touch.
Mexico is currently anticipating whether she will emerge from his influence.
Jill Biden, the first lady of the United States, headed an American group to attend Sheinbaum’s swearing-in event. President Biden expressed his congratulations, stating that Mexico and the United States have strong alliances and are neighboring countries with deep political, economic, and cultural connections. The United States is dedicated to collaborating with Mexico to ensure that the citizens of both nations achieve the democratic, prosperous, and secure future they deserve.
The background of Claudia Sheinbaum
Sheinbaum has a science background. She holds a Doctorate degree in energy engineering. She has a sibling who works as a physicist. During a 2023 interview with The Associated Press, Sheinbaum expressed her belief in science.
Observers believe that Sheinbaum’s mayorship reflected her grounded approach during COVID-19, contrasting with Lopez Obrador’s national stance.
Sheinbaum imposed restrictions on businesses’ hours and capacity during the rapid spread of the virus and also broadened its testing program. She also openly wore masks and encouraged social distancing.
She hails from a previous, more firmly established leftist background that existed before López Obrador’s patriotic, populist movement.
Before Sheinbaum’s inauguration, Colombia’s President, Gustavo Petro surprised reporters by revealing that she had supported Colombia’s leftist group, M-19, and assisted exiled rebel fighters in Mexico, which was the same group he had once been a part of. Many Mexicans arrived to assist us, with Claudia being one of them.
Although Sheinbaum’s team didn’t answer right away to questions about Petro’s remarks, the concept is believable: Sheinbaum has a more traditional ‘left-wing’ background than López Obrador, and has mentioned being part of leftist youth organizations during her college days, backing rebel groups in Central and South America.
Her parents were prominent activists in Mexico’s 1968 student movement, which concluded with a government massacre of hundreds of student protesters in Mexico City’s Tlatelolco plaza shortly before the Summer Olympics began that year.
Sheinbaum is the initial president with a Jewish heritage in the mainly Catholic nation.
Sheinbaum maintained a lead from start to finish, securing a solid victory in June with close to 60% of the vote, approximately twice as many as Xóchitl Gálvez, her closest rival.
Being López Obrador’s selected replacement, she benefited from the high approval ratings he held during his six years as president.
Gálvez’s opposition coalition had difficulty gaining support, but voters continued to support the ruling party in Congress, enabling Morena and its allies to pass key constitutional changes before López Obrador’s term ended.
Prior to the approval of a controversial constitutional reform in Mexico’s judiciary that will require all judges to be elected, Sheinbaum stood beside López Obrador, who had advocated for it.
Sheinbaum stated that the changes to the legal system will have no impact on our commercial partnerships, as well as domestic and international investments in Mexico.
On the contrary, there will be an enhanced and improved system of justice and democracy for all.
Soon after, when López Obrador’s suggestion to place the National Guard under military control was being evaluated, Sheinbaum supported it in response to detractors. She stated that it would not lead to the militarization of the nation and assured that the National Guard would uphold human rights.
And shortly before assuming her position, Sheinbaum supported López Obrador in his ongoing diplomatic conflict with Spain. She justified her choice of not inviting King Felipe VI of Spain to her inauguration by pointing out that the king had not apologized for Spain’s conquest of Mexico, as López Obrador had requested years ago.
Sheinbaum achieved triumph seven decades after Mexican women gained suffrage.
The competition ultimately boiled down to Sheinbaum and Gálvez, with both women being pressured by Mexico’s ingrained machismo to justify why they believed they were capable of becoming president.
Starting in 2018, Mexico’s Congress has achieved a gender balance of 50-50, partly because of gender quotas imposed on party candidates. However, Sheinbaum takes over a nation where violence against women is increasing rapidly. Just one day following Sheinbaum’s win, Yolanda Sanchez Figueroa, the woman mayor of a western Mexico town, was shot dead on a public street, as reported by local media. The mayor’s bodyguard was also reported to be dead by the Michoacan attorney general’s office.
In many rural Indigenous regions of the country, there are still numerous areas where power is solely in the hands of men. Despite reforms, around 2.5 million women are still working in domestic roles, facing challenges such as low wages, employer abuse, extended hours, and unpredictable working conditions.
In 2023, the Supreme Court of Mexico declared that laws in the country banning abortions are against the constitution and infringe on women’s rights.
While the Mexican government mandates removing abortion as a crime and providing the procedure in federal health institutions upon request, additional efforts at the state level are needed to eliminate all consequences.
Feminists argue that the mere act of electing a female president does not ensure that she will govern from a gender perspective. Both Sheinbaum and López Obrador have faced criticism in the past for seeming to show little empathy towards women demonstrating against gender violence.
Related Article:
Who is Claudia Sheinbaum? Her Life and Political Career
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