As the world welcomes Mexico’s first female president, expectations for Claudia Sheinbaum to prioritize feminist causes are high.
History, however, suggests that simply electing a woman doesn’t guarantee a gender-focused agenda. Margaret Thatcher, Golda Meir, and Indira Gandhi—all highly symbolic leaders—largely ignored women’s issues, focusing instead on their broader political challenges.
Advocates for women’s rights hope Sheinbaum will fare much better than her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, whose administration faced harsh criticism for dismissing feminist issues. While AMLO launched social programs to support low-income families, his policies often overlooked women’s safety and well-being. Cuts to nurseries, shelters and school meal programs disproportionately impacted women, and his defense of party members accused of sexual misconduct further harmed his reputation on women’s issues. His deflection of abortion rights debates also frustrated many activists.
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