"Sheinbaum is the first female, and Jewish, president in all of Mexico, Canada, and the United States." --Maia Cavagnolo, 8th Grade
Claudia Sheinbaum, former mayor of Mexico City, was sworn into office on October 1st as president of Mexico. Sheinbaum is the first female, and Jewish, president in all of Mexico, Canada, and the United States.
So, who is Sheinbaum? She spent her childhood in Mexico City, going to various schools, before being enrolled in UNAM (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, or National Autonomous University of Mexico) to study physics. She graduated with an undergraduate degree in 1989. Roland Martin in their article on Sheinbaum says “for her master’s and doctorate degrees (also at UNAM), she studied energy engineering and conducted her doctoral research at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California, U.S.”
Nash Castillo, an employee at ASF, American School Foundation, in Mexico City, said that a big reason she voted for Sheinbaum was her background at UNAM. “Since her origins in the UNAM science faculty, one of the most politicized and most aware of the political environment since its founding, she showed herself to be in favor of ideas that contravened the neoliberal policy of the center and right-wing governments.” Castillo is essentially saying that Sheinbaum is against right-wing governmenting styles. Castillo continues, saying “being from a scientific background she aims to enhance Mexico from this perspective.”
Since leaving UNAM, Sheinbaum has been heavily involved in politics. In 2000, Mayor López Obrador, to whom she has political ties to, appointed her as the environmental minister for Mexico City. Once appointed, she helped introduce Metrobus, the city’s public transit, and various other construction projects.
So, who is Sheinbaum? She spent her childhood in Mexico City, going to various schools, before being enrolled in UNAM (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, or National Autonomous University of Mexico) to study physics. She graduated with an undergraduate degree in 1989. Roland Martin in their article on Sheinbaum says “for her master’s and doctorate degrees (also at UNAM), she studied energy engineering and conducted her doctoral research at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California, U.S.”
Nash Castillo, an employee at ASF, American School Foundation, in Mexico City, said that a big reason she voted for Sheinbaum was her background at UNAM. “Since her origins in the UNAM science faculty, one of the most politicized and most aware of the political environment since its founding, she showed herself to be in favor of ideas that contravened the neoliberal policy of the center and right-wing governments.” Castillo is essentially saying that Sheinbaum is against right-wing governmenting styles. Castillo continues, saying “being from a scientific background she aims to enhance Mexico from this perspective.”
Since leaving UNAM, Sheinbaum has been heavily involved in politics. In 2000, Mayor López Obrador, to whom she has political ties to, appointed her as the environmental minister for Mexico City. Once appointed, she helped introduce Metrobus, the city’s public transit, and various other construction projects.
In 2006, she went back to UNAM where she “contributed to the climate change mitigation section of the IPCC’s [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] fourth and fifth assessment reports and continued her scientific research. The IPCC was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize following the fourth assessment’s publication in 2007,” says Martin.
It was 2015 when Sheinbaum won the election to become Mexico City’s Tlalpan district’s mayor. She stressed topics such as water rights, though she became slightly controversial when accidents in the infrastructure she oversaw killed several people. Even after the accidents, her “political stock continued to rise,” Martin continues.
“[Sheinbaum’s] tendency towards respect, right, listening, and inclusion of different voices was clearly seen when she was mayor of Tlalpan,” says Castillo.
Setting yet another record, Sheinbaum was the first female, and Jewish person to be the Mayor of Mexico City. She was elected in 2018, being selected out of seven competitors, and won 50% of the vote. Martin says that “[when she became mayor of Mexico City], Sheinbaum took on public transit and environmental issues. Her government expanded rainwater collection, reformed waste management, and began a reforestation program.”
Then, of course, she ran for president under the MORENA political party, gaining an even higher percentage of votes than when she ran for Mayor. “[Sheinbaum] won the presidency with between 58.3% and 60.7% of the vote, according to a rapid sample count by Mexico's electoral authority. That is set to be the highest vote percentage in Mexico's democratic history,” says Kylie Madry and Valentine Hilaire in their article.
It was 2015 when Sheinbaum won the election to become Mexico City’s Tlalpan district’s mayor. She stressed topics such as water rights, though she became slightly controversial when accidents in the infrastructure she oversaw killed several people. Even after the accidents, her “political stock continued to rise,” Martin continues.
“[Sheinbaum’s] tendency towards respect, right, listening, and inclusion of different voices was clearly seen when she was mayor of Tlalpan,” says Castillo.
Setting yet another record, Sheinbaum was the first female, and Jewish person to be the Mayor of Mexico City. She was elected in 2018, being selected out of seven competitors, and won 50% of the vote. Martin says that “[when she became mayor of Mexico City], Sheinbaum took on public transit and environmental issues. Her government expanded rainwater collection, reformed waste management, and began a reforestation program.”
Then, of course, she ran for president under the MORENA political party, gaining an even higher percentage of votes than when she ran for Mayor. “[Sheinbaum] won the presidency with between 58.3% and 60.7% of the vote, according to a rapid sample count by Mexico's electoral authority. That is set to be the highest vote percentage in Mexico's democratic history,” says Kylie Madry and Valentine Hilaire in their article.
In their article for NPR, Emily Green says “a big reason Sheinbaum won the election is her ties to López Obrador. One of the most popular and divisive figures in Mexican history, López Obrador implemented social programs that helped millions of people rise out of poverty while also weakening democratic institutions and empowering the military.” Adrian Tostado, a counselor at ASF in Mexico City, agrees, saying that “the MORENA political party is now holding the power since the former president, Lopez Obrador, [belongs] to that same party. ”
But why is it important that Sheinbaum was elected president? “Victory for Sheinbaum is a major step for Mexico, a country known for its macho culture and home to the world's second biggest Roman Catholic population, which for years pushed more traditional values and roles for women,” Madry and Hilaire say.
“Claudia Sheinbaum’s election as Mexico's first female president marks a historic milestone. Her victory reflects a cultural shift in Mexico,” says Castillo. Tostado has a similar view, saying “she’s the first female president in Mexico so that’s big, that’s important, historically.”
“The hope for economic, social development, and equal opportunities for all Mexicans brings me peace and at the same time a commitment to be a better citizen of this country. I feel proud to be represented by a woman,” concludes Castillo.
But why is it important that Sheinbaum was elected president? “Victory for Sheinbaum is a major step for Mexico, a country known for its macho culture and home to the world's second biggest Roman Catholic population, which for years pushed more traditional values and roles for women,” Madry and Hilaire say.
“Claudia Sheinbaum’s election as Mexico's first female president marks a historic milestone. Her victory reflects a cultural shift in Mexico,” says Castillo. Tostado has a similar view, saying “she’s the first female president in Mexico so that’s big, that’s important, historically.”
“The hope for economic, social development, and equal opportunities for all Mexicans brings me peace and at the same time a commitment to be a better citizen of this country. I feel proud to be represented by a woman,” concludes Castillo.
