Claudia Sheinbaum of the ruling party Morena, an environmental scientist and former mayor of Mexico City, was elected Mexico’s first female president on Sunday, marking a historic milestone.
News About Nigeria reports that Sunday marked Mexico’s largest election ever, with 20,000 local, state and federal offices at stake.
With nearly 40% of the votes counted, Mexico’s electoral agency projects Sheinbaum will win the presidency with between 58% and over 60% of the votes.
Sheinbaum beat the opposition candidate and her closest rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, a former senator from a coalition called Fuerza y Corazón por México.
Gálvez, is expected to garner between 26% and 28%, while the other opposition candidate, Jorge Álvarez Máynez, is projected to receive between 9% and 10%.
Sheinbaum is scheduled to take office in October.
Outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, widely seen as Sheinbaum’s political mentor, posted his congratulations on X (formerly known as Twitter).
In her victory speech, Sheinbaum announced that both her rivals had conceded and congratulated her on her win.
“I will become the first woman president of Mexico,” she declared to an enthusiastic crowd.
Sheinbaum has been the frontrunner in the presidential race for over a year.
The 61-year-old climate scientist was part of the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change team that shared a Nobel Peace Prize with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore in 2007.
Elena Poniatowska, 92, one of Mexico’s most distinguished writers who has documented decades of women’s history in the country, expressed her support. “I’ve always believed in women,” Poniatowska told NPR before the election.
“I think it’s not a dream. I think it’s a battle that has been won.”
