Former Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum has won the election to become Mexico's first female president.
Election officials announced early Monday morning that she had a statistical lead to make her win over opposition candidate Xóchitl Gálvez insurmountable, the Associated Press reported.
The National Electoral Institute's president said Sheinbaum, 61, had between 58.3% and 60.7% of the vote. Gálvez had between 26.6% and 28.6% of the vote.
Sheinbaum is the chosen candidate for Morena, the party created by outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
"We women have landed in the presidency," she said to a crowd of supporters early Monday. "We are going to govern for everyone."
Issues Facing Mexican President
Sheinbaum will have to work to bring peace to violence-torn Mexico. There were more than 30,000 murders a year in the past several years. The official number dropped in 2022 but there are questions about the accuracy of that number.
Mexico's First Jewish President
Along with being the first female president, Claudia Sheinbaum will be Mexico's first Jewish president. Claudia Sheinbaum was born to Jewish parents but was raised in a secular household in Mexico City, according to the New York Times.
Her grandparents were Ashkenazi Jews who fled Lithuania in the early 20th century but her parents said they were athiests.
Mexico's population is largely Catholic.
Sheinbaum's Past
Sheinbaum is a trained scientist. She received her Ph.D. in energy engineering from the National Autonomous University of Mexico. She has authored more than 100 articles and two books.
She became the first female mayor of Mexico City in 2018 according to VOA News.
