Monday, June 3, 2024 - Claudia Sheinbaum has been elected Mexico's first woman president in the country's 200-year history.
Mexico's official electoral authority said preliminary
results showed the 61-year-old former mayor of Mexico City winning between 58%
and 60% of the vote in Sunday's election.
That gives her a lead of about 30 percentage points over her
main rival, businesswoman Xóchitl Gálvez.
Ms Sheinbaum will replace her mentor, outgoing President
Andrés Manuel López Obrador, on 1 October.
Ms. Sheinbaum, a former energy scientist, has promised
continuity, saying that she will continue to build on the "advances"
made by Mr. López Obrador.
She also pledged to continue the outgoing president's
controversial "hugs not bullets" strategy of tackling crime at its
roots.
Galvez had vowed a tougher approach to cartel-related
violence, declaring "hugs for criminals are over."
More than 450,000 people have been murdered and tens of
thousands have gone missing since the government deployed the army to fight
drug trafficking in 2006.
In her victory speech, she also highlighted what has set
this Mexican election apart from previous ones. She told cheering voters:
"For the first time in the 200 years of the [Mexican] Republic, I will
become the first woman president of Mexico."
But, she said, it was an achievement not just for her but
for all women. "I've said it from the start, this is not just about
me getting [to the top office], it's about all of us getting here."
She added: "I won't fail you."
Ms Sheinbaum also thanked her rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, who has
conceded defeat.
Prior to running for president, Ms Sheinbaum was mayor of
Mexico City, one of the most influential political positions in the country.
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