Xóchitl Gálvez or Claudia Sheinbaum: Mexico’s first female president | AMLO | Beauty | Elections Mexico 2024 | Marcelo Ebrard | Andrés Manuel López Obrador | Equality | | the world

In one year and one month, Mexico It will mark a milestone in Republican Party history: It will be the first time a woman will be president, a country that — before and after — like the majority. Latin America– He still carries the backpack of machismo on his back.

Although it has not been officially announced yet, Xochitl Galvez Y Claudia Sheinbaum They themselves will be candidates for the post of President. And it’s not official because the ruling party’s poll results are still missing. Morena, which will be released on Wednesday, September 6. On that side, it’s almost a given Sheinbaum He will take office in his struggle with Marcelo Ebrard, former Mexican Foreign Minister. Unless a disaster strikes, the former head of government Mexico CityWill succeed to Andres Manuel Lopez ObradoR.

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On the opposition side, the coalition Wide front The selection was made till August 31 last Xochitl Galvez The process was scheduled for last Sunday, before the end, as the numbers gave widespread support to the charismatic senator, who also had a female opponent in custody. Beatrice Parades, less representative than historical and once dominant AT.

“It’s Change and It’s Time for Women”, Started on his own Sheinbaum In one of his functions. “Women know how to weave differently to us”, He also said GalwaysThe campaign — planned for November but brought on in June by presidential decree, in defiance of election laws — will have a different tone.

“The inauguration of a woman president will undoubtedly be a milestone in the history of the country. Although we have progressed equally in the cabinet and governorships, the Congress parties – the National Congress and the states being equal – have made wonderful progress at the legislative level, but the executive has resisted.Carolina Monica Gilas, a professor at the UNAM Center for Political Studies and an expert on equal representation and gender perspectives in politics, points out to this newspaper.

“The accession of a woman to the presidency would undoubtedly be a milestone in the history of the country (…) The executive branch was opposed”

“Whoever becomes president, it will be a historic moment, and it will reflect the feminist movement, the efforts of the authorities, and the great debate over more than two decades about how we should make our democracy more plural, inclusive and equal.”Collaboration.

Adriana Páez Carlos, National Researcher, Professor of the Faculty of Political Science at UNAM and Director of Gender Studies at the Parliamentary Bureau, shares the same opinion: “If Xóchitl Gálvez and Claudia Sheinbaum are finally confirmed, it is very appropriate because the feminist movement in Mexico is gaining strength. And it has contributed positively to the women of the country”.

However, Baéz explains that although equality has been introduced in many cases, it is still an unresolved issue, especially in the levels of popular elections associated with collective bodies such as parliaments at the presidential level.

“Though the country is changing, perhaps this situation is coincidental. However, glass ceilings are breaking as more women leaders are working in political parties. This case is not mandated by the protocol, but it occurred in the context of an egalitarian democracy”, Purpose

For the girl

Scheinbaum and Galvez They have different profiles, but they agree that they have not been champions of feminist movements. Coming from a Jewish family, Scheinbaum studied physics and spent decades in student groups and academic circles.Until he was appointed environment secretary by López Obrador when he was mayor of Mexico City.

Xóchitl Gálvez, a member of the Otomi tribe, had to work from an early age to support his family. But he managed to enter the university where he studied engineering. In the 1990s, he successfully founded a digital technology company and became director of the Office of Indigenous Peoples Development during Vicente Fox’s presidency.

It is not yet known whether feminist demands (such as abortion) will be part of the duo’s agenda.But the tone of the campaign will no doubt change, and at the very least, the issue of women’s rights will be on the table.

“The issue of gender will be on the agenda, although it will vary according to the political agenda. The current government withdrew social programs that were intended to support women, such as day schools and full-time schools.Pace says.

“Xóchitl Gálvez said he would back the women, but little is known yet as no proposals have been made. For his part, Claudia Sheinbaum, the most loyal to AMLO, is a woman of great autonomy and great talent. For example, in Mexico City, this is different from the policies implemented by the president in the epidemic, because when the undersecretary of health said that it was not necessary to wear masks, he wanted to listen to the scientists.Collaboration.

For Carolina Gilas, the gender issue, ironically, will not be so fundamental in this campaign: “Of course, it will continue to be talked about because of its historical and symbolic importance, but I don’t think we’ll see any major changes in the campaign. Due to political and social polarization, discourse has focused on supporting the continuation of AMLO’s plan, the so-called fourth change, or an alternative proposal so that the plan will no longer continue.”.

On the other hand, in a country that continues to suffer from high rates FemicideHaving the next president be a woman will help fight these crimes more effectively. In June 2023, 80 femicides were recorded MexicoAccording to data from the Executive Secretariat of the National Public Safety Agency, the number has reached 426 murders of women in the first half of the year.

“In a country that continues to suffer from high levels of femicide, having a woman as its next president will help fight these crimes more effectively.”

“In Mexico and in Latin America, the progress we have been able to make in terms of women’s political representation has not been paralleled elsewhere in our collective life. Because these arrogant and patriarchal systems persist, we have not moved forward with the public policies necessary to achieve a better balance. There is a great overdue to eradicate violence, discrimination and inequality. agenda,” Gilas points out.

Typical machismo

As part of that patriarchal culture, both Xóchitl Gálvez and Claudia Sheinbaum will undoubtedly be scrutinized differently than other male candidates in previous campaigns.

The first one, of course, is President López Obrador, whom Galvez called “macho” a few weeks ago, saying he was being “fingered” by some rival politicians.

“Like the rest of the world, we have a culture where aristocrats don’t realize that they’re attacking us or marginalizing us. In the case of Xóchitl Gálvez, he’s destroying her candidacy. In a way, it’s gender violence, because he’s attacking her for being a woman,” says Pease. .

“Since the presidency, Xóchitl has had many exposures that could be considered gender violence, because she accused herself of being manipulated, of not having her own thinking, which should no longer happen in a democracy. The talk of women being controlled by men is no longer consistent. But it is also true that Claudia Scheinbaum received criticism when she was said to have been appointed to that position by the president. ”, Gilas points out.

The campaign officially kicks off this September 7th, and there are still months to see how the preferences move between the two. What will not change is that this will be a grassroots campaign in which, for the first time, two highly trained professional women are vying for the presidency. By the time they reached this point, they had already made history.