Claudia Sheinbaum, first female president of this country which has one of the highest rates of femicide in the world

Historic day for Mexico: a woman will now lead the country and its 130 million inhabitants. Claudia Sheinbaum, almost 62 years old, comes from the left and until 2023 she was the mayor of Mexico City.

“I will not disappoint you” were the first words of Claudia Sheinbaum, the big winner on Monday June 3 with nearly 58% of the votes. This is almost thirty points ahead of her center-right rival, Xochitl Galvez, much more than what the polls. Mexican women – and even Mexicans – take a certain pride in this 100% female campaign, which contrasts with the duel of octogenarians of their American neighbor.

With a dancer’s head, impeccable ponytail and relentless smile, Claudia Sheinbaum is a pioneer: she was the first woman in her country to become a doctor in electrical engineering, before continuing her studies in Berkeley, California . Before entering politics, she worked for 20 years as a physicist on energy and climate change – she was notably part of the IPCC, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate.

His election is a very strong symbol in a society where women are particularly victims of violence: ten women are murdered every day in Mexico according to the UN. This is one of the highest rates in the world. But Claudia Sheinbaum, who revealed herself as a feminist late in life, wants to implement at the national level what she succeeded at the capital level. Create a prosecutor’s office specializing in femicides, a large proportion of which are still classified as suicides by poorly trained investigators. It is a question of improving their judicial treatment, when nine times out of ten, the prosecutions lead to an acquittal. Imposing the removal of the violent spouse, or setting up a whole network of specialized lawyers, are among the measures.

The current president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, did not do all this. Between 2018 and 2020, at the start of his mandate, Mexican women even massively took to the streets to denounce the machismo of society and the inaction of the head of state. Which does not prevent him from leaving power today with 60% favorable opinions.

Claudia Sheinbaum, who owes her entire career to him, embodies a more modern and progressive left, but she is committed to pursuing her social policy in a country where nearly 47 million people live below the poverty line.

Granddaughter of European Jews who settled in Mexico in the 1940s to escape Nazi barbarism, she will also be judged on her ability to fight against drug cartels and insecurity. During the campaign, around thirty candidates for Congress and municipal elections were assassinated. It’s all in its slogan: “It’s time for women and transformation” from the country.