Mexico elects Claudia Sheinbaum as first female president

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Claudia Sheinbaum, the projected winner of Mexico’s presidential election, will become the first female president in the country’s 200-year history.

Sheinbaum, the successor to outgoing President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, has vowed to continue the direction set by the populist leftist leader. But the cool-headed scientist’s style is the antithesis of Mexico’s male-dominated political culture.

“I promise I won’t let you down,” Sheinbaum said as he greeted supporters at the Zocalo, Mexico City’s main colonial-era square.

The president of the National Electoral Council said Scheinbaum, whose Morena party is also expected to have a majority in both houses of Congress, received between 58.3% and 60.7% of the vote, while opposition candidate Xóchitl Gálvez received between 26.6% and 28.6% and Jorge Álvarez Máynez received between 9.9% and 10.8%.

The climate scientist and former Mexico City mayor said her two rivals had called her to acknowledge her victory.

The official preliminary vote count, based on preliminary results from nearly 50% of polling stations, showed Sheinbaum leading Galvez by 28 percentage points.

The fact that both leading candidates are women leaves no doubt that Mexico will make history on Sunday.

“As I’ve said on other occasions, I didn’t get here alone,” Sheinbaum said shortly after his victory was confirmed. “We all got here together, with our heroes who gave us our country, with our mothers, daughters and granddaughters.”

Sheinbaum would also be the first person of Jewish background to lead the majority Catholic country.

She will begin her six-year term on October 1. Mexico’s constitution does not allow for re-election.

The leftist said she believes government has an important role to play in addressing economic inequality and providing a solid social safety net, just like her political mentor.

López Obrador’s designated successor, 61-year-old Scheinbaum, has been leading in opinion polls despite a fierce challenge from Galvez, the first time in Mexico that both main opponents are women.

“Of course, with great respect, I congratulate Claudia Sheinbaum, who won with a huge margin,” López Obrador said shortly after election authorities announced the results. “She will be the first (female) president of Mexico in 200 years.”

If that advantage holds, he would be close to his 2018 landslide victory. López Obrador won the presidency with 53.2% of the vote after two failed attempts at the polls, with the PAN taking 22.3% and the PRI 16.5% in a three-way race.

Still, it is unlikely that Sheinbaum will enjoy the same unconditional loyalty as López Obrador.

In the Zocalo Plaza, Sheinbaum’s victory did not draw the same cheering crowds that López Obrador won in 2018. Those present were enthusiastic but relatively small.

Sara Ríos, 76, a retired literature professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, celebrated when she heard that Galvez had conceded defeat.

“The only way we can move forward is by working together,” Rios said. “She will work to bring peace to the country and will work to make progress, but it is a slow process.”

Fernando Fernández, a 28-year-old chef, said he voted for Sheinbaum because of her connection to López Obrador, using the president’s initials, AMLO. But his biggest hope is that Sheinbaum can “improve the things that AMLO couldn’t do, which is gas prices, crime and drug trafficking, which he didn’t fight despite having the power.”

The main opposition candidate, Galvez, a tech entrepreneur and former senator, has promised a tougher crackdown on organized crime.

“I want to emphasize that I recognize (Sheinbaum’s victory) and am resolute in my commitment to achieving results and addressing the serious problems facing the country,” she said in her conceding speech.

López Obrador claims he has reduced the historically high homicide rate by 20% since taking office in December 2018. But much of this is based on a questionable reading of statistics. The actual homicide rate appears to have fallen by only about 4% in six years.

Julio García, an office worker in Mexico City, said he voted for the opposition because of crime. “They robbed me at gunpoint twice. You have to change direction and change the leadership,” the 34-year-old said. “If we continue like this, we will become Venezuela.”

In the San Andres Totoltepec neighborhood on the edge of Mexico City, Stefania Navarrete, a 34-year-old housewife, said she planned to vote for Scheinbaum despite her misgivings about López Obrador and his party.

“For me, being a Mexican woman and having a female president, it’s like before, just because you were a woman, you were limited to certain professions. That’s not the case anymore.”

She said the social programs of her mentor, Sheinbaum, were vital, but added that the increase in drug cartel violence over the past few years was her main concern in this election.

Nearly 100 million people registered to vote, and turnout was about 60%, similar to previous elections.

Voters also elected governors in nine of the nation’s 32 states, as well as candidates for both houses of Congress and thousands of mayors and other local offices. It was the largest election in the country’s history, and one that was also rife with violence.

The election is widely seen as a referendum on López Obrador, a populist who has expanded social programs but largely failed to reduce drug cartel violence in Mexico. His “More Party” currently holds 23 of Mexico’s 32 governorships and majorities in both houses of Congress.

Sheinbaum pledged to continue all of López Obrador’s policies, including a universal pension for seniors and a program to pay young people for apprenticeships.

Just as the upcoming rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in November highlighted deep divisions in the United States, Sunday’s election revealed how deeply polarized Mexican opinion is over the country’s direction, including its security strategy and how to develop its economy.