On June 2, 2024, a historic event occurred in Mexico. For the first time in history, a woman, Claudia Sheinbaun Pardo, was elected president of that Latin American country. The voters opted for a woman to govern the destinies of the nation for the next six years. This fact is very significant, since it shows that the Mexican people have been opening up, little by little, to the great changes that their country needs. For decades, Mexico was governed by the center right, represented by the PRI (Institutional Revolutionary Party) and by the most conservative right, by the PAN (National Action Party), parties that have bled the nation, giving their resources to the national oligarchies. and foreign capital. In these elections, voters gave a clear message: we want the political project led by Andrés Manuel López Obrador of MORENA (National Regeneration Movement), to continue making the structural changes that are necessary to improve the living conditions of all Mexicans.
Claudia Sheinbaum’s government must face a series of challenges, ranging from finishing many pending political commitments of the AMLO administration during the 2018 presidential campaign, to developing its own leadership style. This article aims to highlight some of the challenges that the new president of Mexico will face.
Since her time at UNAM, Claudia Sheinbaum stood out for being a leader very active student in student political life, participating in a group of young people who would be part of the founding of the PRD (Party of the Democratic Revolution) in 1989 along with figures such as Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas and Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO). She was also founder, along with Andrés Manuel López Obrador, of the MORENA Party in 2011. Among the public positions that Sheinbaum held include: the Ministry of the Environment, during the AMLO government when he was mayor of Mexico City (2000-2006) and head of the Government of the State of Mexico, during the period from 2018 to 2023. As can be seen, there is a common denominator in Claudia Sheinbaum’s political career, and this is the historical relationship that she has maintained with AMLO during much of her political career. Despite having been in a relationship for many years, AMLO has a very different leadership style Sheinbaum, characterized as a charismatic and eloquent politician in his appearances public. On the contrary, the president-elect projects herself with less persuasive rhetoric. Without a doubt, this will be one of the first challenges to face; develop a charisma and own leadership.
Sheinbaum was elected president of Mexico with almost 60% of the votes, surpassing by more than 3 million votes than those obtained by AMLO in the last election. This done, clearly, it shows that Mexican voters are not only satisfied with the current administration, but they expect a government of continuity. Another important element that the last election demonstrated, is the great popularity that AMLO’s government enjoys, thank you, largely to the social policies implemented by his administration, which, in their vast majority have been designed to lift a large sector of the Mexican people out of poverty.
Not everything has been easy for the current government. As soon as AMLO took office, a series of commitments with citizens, around 100, that were known to be not possible fulfill in a period of six years of government. AMLO’s government project is gone structuring years in advance of the 2018 electoral victory, with at least two decades of anticipation before becoming president of Mexico. Since then, AMLO was aware that many of the components of his political project could only be developed with long-term measures, especially those linked to construction of a fairer economy; improvement of public health and education; attack the causes that they generate emigration to the United States; the decrease in violence; the improvement of judicial system and the frontal attack against corruption, among others.
While it is true, many of the commitments acquired on December 1, 2018, upon assuming the presidency of Mexico, such as the increase in the minimum wage, the substantive reduction in poverty levels and the decrease in the unemployment rate, among others, it cannot be said that the work to resolve these problems has been completed. On the contrary, there are many pending commitments. We will go on to point out some of them, which, to be fulfilled, will require specific policies, in the medium and long term, and that will be part of the great challenges that Claudia Sheinbaum will face in her six-year term of government.
“Reduce violence by 50%” was one of the most important promises during his AMLO campaign, unfortunately, the number of crimes has increased during the last years. More than 180,000 homicides, an average of 95 a day, have been committed during its administration, without counting more than thirty murders of candidates for different positions public during this year’s electoral campaign period. If we add to that the level of impunity for crimes, which is 90%, the situation becomes worrying. Organized crime is rooted in Mexican society, as in the vast majority of countries of Latin America, and this has permeated all levels of Mexican society, through corruption of broad sectors of society, especially public servants (politicians and officials of the state apparatus) and the agents in charge of citizen security. To solve this problem, it is not enough to just prosecute crimes and imprison those responsible of the same, but rather, strategies must be designed that can offer other types of solutions. Claudia Sheinbaum echoed this vision, and proposed confronting violence, in all its forms, demonstrations, ending the scourge of poverty, stimulating a better distribution of wealth and the generation of greater opportunities for young people through access to education. It sounds easy, but we all know that this is a complex problem. Be interesting to observe the concrete measures that the new president will take to face this situation.
Regarding the economy, AMLO promised annual growth of 6%, which was a fairly optimistic projection. In the year 2023, the Mexican economy grew 3.2%, and if we take an average of the last 5 years of the six-year term, the annual growth was 0.8%, showing only marginal improvement during the years 2022 and 2023. One of the great problems is inflation, which during the month of April reached 4.6%, affecting the cost of life in general, but especially in the area of fuels.
As mentioned previously, one of the successes of the current government was the low significant increase in poverty levels, reducing the rate from 43.9% to 36.3% during 2022, lifting almost nine million Mexicans out of poverty, in addition to the increase in pensions for retirees. In the economic area, Claudia Sheinbaum will continue to face great challenges, due to the economic and historical dependence that Mexico has on the USA. A solution to this problem would be for the new administration to expand trade relations with other countries in the region and with nations that are proposing the construction of commercial relationships with a multipolar vision, such as BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), an organization that represents a market of 40% of the world population and 25% of the world GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Yes, Mexico wants them to respect their sovereignty, it is crucial to break the economic dependence on the USA.
Another commitment not fulfilled by the current administration was the clarification of the murder of the normalista students of Ayotzinapa. To be fair, AMLO did comply with the creation of a “Truth Commission”, but the results that said instance produced have left the victims’ families and Mexican society in general dissatisfied. The new government must insist on the clarification of such a horrendous crime, as a sign of the political and moral interest of the government, to end impunity and show the world a clear commitment to the defense of human rights in Mexico.
Finally, another of the great unfulfilled commitments was that of the migration of undocumented Mexicans to the United States. In this area, the AMLO government leaves much to be desired. The outgoing president affirmed that in his government a state of such well-being that it would not be necessary for Mexicans to emigrate to the United States. Apparently, he is not even close to achieving this goal. Unfortunately, the attitude of AMLO’s government leaves a bitter taste in this matter. For a number of reasons, this administration has made a series of concessions to the US government, helping them stopping immigration at the border and making it difficult for migrant caravans to arrive Central Americans who cross Mexican territory to reach the border of the United States joined. It is worth remembering that the migratory phenomenon is not “casual”, he responds, largely measure, to the “leonine” economic and political relations that the North American government has established with the nations of Latin America. The United States has not only bled economically to Latin American countries, but, historically, it has encouraged regional conflicts, seeking the political destabilization of these nations, benefiting the national oligarchies and defending their economic interests throughout the continent. These are the true causes of “illegal” immigration to the North, and this situation has not changed in decades. Therefore, it is very difficult to understand that a progressive government in Mexico is lend to serve as “guardian” of United States interests in the region. Unquestionably, this situation must change, regardless of the results of the U.S. presidential elections next November. Whoever is the new president of the United States, Mexico’s position must prioritize the interests of its fellow citizens and of their Central American brothers.
Claudia Sheinbaum will assume the presidency on October 1 of this year. We wait with optimism that her government can make the structural changes that the Mexican people so much needed. I hope it is faithful to what she stated during her campaign: “We are going to continue making Mexico, every day, a more just, democratic, free and sovereign country.”
El Tribuno del Pueblo brings you articles written by individuals or organizations, along with our own reporting. Bylined articles reflect the views of the authors. Unsigned articles reflect the views of the editorial board. Please credit the source when sharing: tribunodelpueblo.org. We’re all volunteers, no paid staff. Please donate at http://tribunodelpueblo.org to keep bringing you the voices of the movement because no human being is illegal.
