New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday congratulated Mexico’s president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, the first woman president in the country’s 200-year history, terming her election a momentous occasion for the people of her country.
In a post on X, Modi also said that he looks toward continued bilateral cooperation between the two nations.
“Congratulations to @Claudiashein, Mexico’s first woman President-elect!
“This is a momentous occasion for the people of Mexico and a tribute to the great leadership of President @lopezobrador as well.
“Looking forward to continued collaboration and shared progress.”
Sheinbaum, 61, former mayor of Mexico City, secured between 58% and 60% of the vote in Sunday’s election – around 30 percentage points ahead of her main rival, businesswoman Xóchitl Gálvez.
Sheinbaum is set to take office on October 1, succeeding her mentor, the outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
Her election is not only a significant personal triumph but also a milestone for gender equality in Mexico, marking the first time a woman will hold the nation’s highest office.
According to Jerusalem Post, Sheinbaum will also be the first female or Jewish president Mexico has ever had.
Sheinbaum’s maternal grandparents immigrated from Bulgaria to Mexico before the Holocaust, while her paternal grandparents had fled from Lithuania in the 1920s due to pogroms. Sheinbaum’s parents were born in Mexico.
Before entering politics, Sheinbaum was a physicist and climate scientist. Her father was a chemical engineer, and her mother was a cell biologist, according to NBC.
Sheinbaum is affiliated with the left-wing party, Morena, the same party which outgoing President López Obrador belongs to. The party itself is described as an anti-neoliberal, populist party.