- Mexico is poised to potentially elect its first female president in the upcoming 2024 general election.
- Claudia Sheinbaum, a former Mexico City mayor and physicist with a PhD in energy engineering.
- Mexico’s Supreme Court recently made a historic decision by declaring the nationwide.
In an upcoming election, Mexico is on the brink of making history by potentially electing its first female president. Both major political parties have nominated women candidates for the presidential race, signaling a significant shift in Mexican politics.
The ruling party, Morena, recently announced Claudia Sheinbaum as its official nominee for the 2024 general election. Sheinbaum is set to compete against Senator Xóchitl Gálvez, who has been nominated by the opposition coalition. The winner of this race will replace the current leader, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who is required to step down due to Mexican law prohibiting a second consecutive six-year term in office.
Claudia Sheinbaum, a former Mexico City mayor, has long been considered the front-runner for this position. Her formal nomination followed her topping a party candidate poll conducted internally. Born in Mexico City in 1962, Sheinbaum boasts a PhD in energy engineering and a degree in physics. Her political journey began in the year 2000 when she served as the secretary of the environment during Obrador’s tenure as the mayor of Mexico City.
She has maintained a close association with the departing leader, consistently supporting him through his three presidential elections. Furthermore, in 2018, she won the election for Mexico City mayor but resigned from the position after four and a half years to pursue her aspiration of running for the presidency of her party, of which she is a founder.
On the other side of the race, her primary opponent, Xóchitl Gálvez, has been formally nominated as the candidate for the coalition of opposition parties known as “Frente Amplio Por Mexico.” Gálvez, who hails from humble beginnings, was able to pursue her education in computer engineering after securing a scholarship. She later ventured into business.
From 2015 to 2018, she served as the mayor of the Miguel Hidalgo borough in Mexico City. In 2018, she secured a seat in the Senate representing the National Action Party (PAN). Gálvez is known for her determination and resilience, as she emphasized in an interview with CNN in July, stating, “What the president (López Obrador) wants is to beat me; he is not going to beat me… I am a brave and forward-thinking woman, so this is just the beginning.”
In another groundbreaking development, Mexico’s Supreme Court issued a historic ruling. On Wednesday, the court declared the present restrictions on abortion unconstitutional and ordered the nationwide decriminalization of abortion.
In a statement on social media, the Supreme Court stated, “The First Chamber of the Court ruled that the legal system that penalizes abortion in the Federal Criminal Code is unconstitutional since it violates the human rights of women and people with the capacity to gestate.” This decision marks a significant step forward in women’s reproductive rights in Mexico.