Will U.S. follow Mexico’s lead in electing a woman president?
Antonieta Mercado
Published in San Diego Union Tribune on October 2nd, 2024
On October 1st Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo was inaugurated as the President of Mexico, making her the first woman to hold this position in the country´s history, after winning the election this past June in a landslide with 30 percent of votes ahead of her main opponent.
According to UN data, she is now the 15th woman currently serving as heads of government worldwide. Just a few years ago, many Mexicans would have expressed a desire to see a woman in the presidency, but they often thought it was not yet the right time. However, perceptions have shifted significantly, and during this election, the prospect of a female president was no longer surprising to the electorate.
In this year´s presidential election, the two main candidates were Xóchitl Gálvez and Claudia Sheinbaum. Gálvez represented a coalition between right-leaning National Action Party (PAN), center-right Revolutionary Institutional Party (PRI), and center-left Democratic Revolution Party (PRD), all of which have seen their influence decline against the rising National Regeneration Movement (MORENA). Founded in 2011 and registered as a political party in 2014, MORENA was instrumental in bringing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) to office in 2018. Sheinbaum, a member of AMLO’s party and the former mayor of Mexico City, ran as the candidate for a coalition between MORENA, the Labor Party (PT), and the Mexican Green Party (PVEM). While a female president does not guarantee a pro-women agenda, and many believe Sheinbaum benefited from the support of voters loyal to a very popular president, it is significant that Mexico is inaugurating its first female president in history. It is even more significant that she is part of a movement that established as its motto “if we want Mexico to advance, we should focus first on the poor.” An environmental engineer with a graduate degree, Sheinbaum began her political career as a student activist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. In 2000, Sheinbaum joined as the Secretary of the Environment in AMLO's cabinet when he was the head of government of Mexico City.
In the US, the prospect of a woman president has sparked debate about whether voters are ready for female leadership. While the current Vice President is a woman, this year’s presidential race initially featured Joe Biden and Donald Trump as main contenders. When Biden stepped down, Vice President Kamala Harris was chosen to replace him on the Democrat’s ticket, reviving the possibility of electing the first female president. Despite this progress, the debate continues over whether the U.S. is ready for a woman in the highest office, a discussion persisting since Hillary Clinton’s Candidacy in 2016. This debate now appears generational, with younger people and women arguing that the US is ready for a female president.
In Mexico, significant efforts over the past three decades have been made to ensure women’s representation in politics. In 1993, women legislators introduced a quota system in electoral rules to require political parties to include women as candidates for office. Initially, this quota system was only a suggestion; however, changes in the legislation gradually compelled parties to nominate women to avoid penalties. In 2014, a Constitutional amendment established a formal parity system, requiring political parties to nominate an equal number of male and female candidates. As a result, the Mexican Chamber of Deputies now has 251 women legislators out of 500. Similarly, the Mexican Senate, has 64 female senators and 64 males.
Despite being the most powerful country in the world, the U.S. has fewer women in top positions compared to Mexico. Currently, the U.S. Senate has only 25 women out of 100, and only 126 out of 435 sits in the House of Representatives are occupied by women. Following this year’s election in Mexico, states like Veracruz, Guanajuato and Morelos will each have a woman governor for the first time, bringing the total to 13 out of 31 governorships. In contrast, the U.S. has 12 women governors out of 50 states. Given this disparity, it is not surprise that many people in the US are still debating whether the country is ready for a female president.
The election of Claudia Sheinbaum as Mexico’s first female president is an important milestone, serving as an example for its more powerful northern neighbor as it approaches the presidential election in November. While Mexico has made substantial strides in women’s political representation through legislative reforms and party quotas, the U.S. still grapples with deep-seated perceptions about women in leadership. As the political landscape evolves, the experience of Mexico highlights the importance of systemic support for female candidates and the need for a cultural shift in how women leaders are viewed. The question remains: can the U.S. learn from its southern neighbor and rise to the occasion, electing its next female president?