Mexico's presidential candidate for Morena party Claudia Sheinbaum celebrates following the results of the general election in Mexico City, on June 3, 2024. (Photo credit: Getty)
61-year-old leftist candidate Claudia Sheinbaum won the country’s elections on Sunday, June 2.
Mexican leftist presidential candidate Claudia Sheinbaum waves as she arrives at a meeting with businessmen at the Hilton Hotel in Mexico City on April 15, 2024. (Photo credit: Getty)
Sheinbaum, a physicist and energy engineer, had also made history in 2018 as the first woman mayor of Mexico City, a position she held until 2023.
Claudia Sheinbaum (Photo credit: Getty)
She has been praised for how she managed the COVID-19 pandemic, by getting people to wear masks and taking preventative measures.
Children activate light installations through a panel during the beginning of the celebrations of Mexico's Independence Day at Zocalo on September 1, 2020 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo credit: Getty)
She obtained more than 58% of votes, the highest percentage of votes in Mexican history, according to official preliminary results.
Presidential candidate Claudia Sheinbaum of ''Sigamos Haciendo Historia'' coalition casts her vote during the presidential elections at Alcaldia Tlalpan on June 02, 2024 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo credit: Getty)
She had been running against another woman candidate, businesswoman and right-wing politician Xóchitl Gálvez, who gained almost 30% of votes.
Mexico's opposition presidential candidate Xochitl Galvez, of the Fuerza y Corazon por Mexico coalition party, casts her vote at the polling station in Mexico City, during the general election on June 2, 2024. (Photo credit: Getty)
Sheinbaum has promised to maintain and improve welfare programs started by the outgoing leftist president Andrés Manuel López Obrador – also known as AMLO – and provide free primary and secondary education.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (R) and the Mexico City's Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum wave at supporters after presenting his government report, at the Zocalo square in Mexico City, on July 1, 2019. (Photo credit: Getty)
However, she faces pressure to tackle security as this was one of the deadliest elections in Mexico’s history, with at least 38 candidates running for congress and senate getting murdered.
Presidential candidate Claudia Sheinbaum of the "Sigamos Haciendo Historia" coalition greets supporters during a campaign rally on April 08, 2024 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo credit: Getty)
She must also address a water crisis, rising deforestation, as well as high levels of violence against the LGBTQ community.
Photo credit: Getty
Sheinbaum will take over the presidency on Oct. 1.
Kassy Cho
