By: Kaitlyn Zhou

A woman and a man, both who have opposite personalities. One is independent and another is outgoing. The two are an unlikely political pair: Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a shopkeeper’s son and a globally recognized scientist, and Claudia Sheinbaum. Sheinbaum is the rival for Lopez Obrador when running for president.

Sheinbaum comes from a tradition of political engagement. Both her parents were in the signature Mexican student movement of 1968, an infamous Tlatelolco massacre in which Mexican security forces killed scores of protesters in the capital.

Sheinbaum participated in a protest against the exclusion of students in high school from higher education at the UNAM, or Autonomous University of Mexico. Sheinbaum was part of a movement against a plan to raise fees at the public institution.

Sheinbaum lacks charisma which is what leads her to being arrogant. However, when it comes to politics, Sheinbaum may succeed in becoming the country’s president. Not only that, Sheinbaum would cast her candidacy as a victory for feminism.

Sheinbaum is an uninspiring public speaker unlike her mentor. She tends to sometimes drift into techno-talk and utopian paeans to her hometown.

Juan Ignocio Zava, a columnist in El Financiero, wrote that Sheinbaum would probably put Gandhi to sleep. He referred to her as the famously truncated slumber habits of the late Indian leader.

In an interview with The Times, Sheinbaum said that she thinks the market is going to resolve problems that presently occurred in Mexico, and that the state has no responsibility.

Unlike Lopez Obrador, who spent billions of dollars to try and revive Mexico’s state-owned oil company, Sheinbaum parts ways with the president on some issues and is a vocal supporter of renewable energy. For example, during the pandemic, Sheinbaum wore a mask and shut down businesses as he downplayed the threat.

The next election was to be held in June, and citizens knew it was going to be a real competition between Sheinbaum and Lopez Obrador and who will be Mexico’s next leader.

In the end, polls showed that Sheinbaum had a lead of 10 points or more in the election.