Credit: EneasMx, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
On June 2nd, 2024, Claudia Sheinbaum marked a milestone in Mexico as she was elected as the first female president (“Presidenta”). Sheinbaum won between 58% to 60% of the votes with the “Morena” party (a left-wing party) against her opponent, Xóchitl Gálvez. Sheinbaum’s victory comes at a peak moment of violence in Mexico and particularly high numbers of femicides—homicides attributed to gender. This panorama contrasts sharply with the hope her presidency represents for many.
A Strong Professional Background
Claudia Sheinbaum has a strong professional background in physics and as an environmental engineer. She spent years in California studying Mexican energy consumption patterns and gaining knowledge on climate change and even shared a Nobel Prize for Peace for her work on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2007. Her experience and student activism led her to attain a position as Mexico City’s environmental minister in the year 2000 when Manuel Lopez Obrador (current president of Mexico) was mayor of the city. She stayed in the “Morena” party with Manuel Lopez Obrador, and in 2018, she became the first female mayor of Mexico City.
Historic Election in North America
This election marks a historic event for North America, as both main parties running for office in 2024 have female candidates: Xóchitl Gálvez for the opposition (PAN-PRI-PRD) and Claudia Sheinbaum for the governing coalition (Morena-PT-PVEM). Sheinbaum’s victory shows a shift in gender-based mindset, as she is the first female president not only in Mexico but in all of North America. In her acceptance speech, she stated, “I also want to thank you because, for the first time in 200 years of the republic, I will become the first female president of Mexico. And like I’ve said on other occasions, I’m not here alone; we are all here, with our sisters, our heroines who gave us a homeland, our ancestors, our mothers, our daughters, and our granddaughters.”
Ongoing Gender-Based Challenges
Even though a woman winning the presidential elections reflects a step forward in breaking gender biases, Mexico continues to deal with severe issues of misogyny and gender-based violence. The country has one of the highest rates of femicide in the world. Around 10 women are reportedly killed every day in Mexico, and the number is still growing. Even though Mexico has achieved remarkable gender inclusion in politics, ranking 4th in the world for women’s parliamentary representation at the beginning of this year and electing the first female president in North America, it still needs to handle the immediate issues regarding gender. Claudia Sheinbaum’s victory comes amid a landscape of Latin American women fighting for their rights and against violence. This presidency represents a profound contrast in a country with increasing issues of gender violence. Her election with the left-wing Morena party highlights a shift towards more progressive gender policies, potentially differentiating her from her predecessor (also from the Morena party) López Obrador’s more traditionalist approach to feminism. In the article written by Rivera Garza (Feminist Mexican writer and recent winner of the Pulitzer Prize), she wonders if the next president of Mexico will have the will and capacity to recognize that gender equality and gender justice are not just marginal issues but crucial issues for Mexico.
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