Claudia Sheinbaum will become Mexico’s first female president

Claudia Sheinbaum is set to become Mexico’s first female president with a historic victory, opinion polls show.

The 61-year-old former mayor of Mexico City is projected to win 56% of the vote in Sunday’s election, convincingly defeating her main rival, businesswoman Xóchitl Gálvez.

Preliminary results also helped her gain a lead.

If exit polls are confirmed, Ms. Sheinbaum will replace her mentor, outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, on October 1.

Ms. Sheinbaum has promised to continue, saying she will continue to build on the “progress” made by Mr. López Obrador.

Their Morena party declared victory – but Ms Gálvez urged her supporters to wait for the official results, which are expected to be announced as early as Monday.

Mario Delgado, Morena’s president, called the election an “outstanding moment in our country’s history.”

Supporters began arriving at the Zócalo, Mexico City’s main square, with banners reading “Claudia Sheinbaum, president” to celebrate her expected victory after five polls. ​gave her a wide lead.

A preliminary count by Mexico’s National Electoral Institute after nearly 10% of votes had been counted put her at 58%.

Ms. Sheinbaum’s election with Ms. Gálvez, has been described as a sea change for women in Mexico.

Edelmira Montiel, 87, says she is grateful to live to see a woman elected to the highest office.

“Before we couldn’t even vote, and when you could, it was to vote for the person your husband told you to vote for. Thank God, that has changed and I have to live like that,” she said. told Reuters news agency, referring to the fact that women were only allowed to vote in national elections in 1953.

While the fact that the two frontrunners were both women was widely praised, the campaign was marred by violent attacks.

Along with a new president, voters also elected all members of Mexico’s Congress and governors in eight states, the head of Mexico City’s government and thousands of local officials.

And in particular, it was local candidates who became targets in the run-up to the vote.

The government said more than 20 people were killed across Mexico, although other surveys put the total at 37.

Xóchitl Gálvez, Ms. Sheinbaum’s opponent, has harshly criticized the government and her opponent in the presidential race for the violence that has devastated much of Mexico.

She promised to be “the bravest president, a president who confronts crime” if elected, but did not provide many details on how she would tackle the powerful criminal gangs behind most violence.

Mr. López Obrador, who has been in power since 2018, has been barred from running for a second term under Mexico’s constitution, which limits presidents to a single six-year term.

Having the support of the popular president, who has an approval rating of nearly 60%, has given Ms. Sheinbaum’s campaign a major boost.

Many of those who voted for Ms. Sheinbaum said they supported Morena’s poverty-reduction program and wanted it to continue.

The party is proud of how millions of Mexicans have lifted themselves out of poverty over the past six years.

Economists have pointed out that there are also other factors at play, such as an increase in remittances sent by Mexicans living abroad to their families back home, but voters appear to have favor what they see as a winning formula.