In this years elections Claudia Sheinbaum won Mexicos presidency with a clear message about womens leadership while Kamala Harris campaign in US avoided the gender topic altogether (which shows different approaches to female leadership in neighboring countries)
Mexico achieved something remarkable: its got equal numbers of men and women in Congress – a feat that puts them at spot 4 worldwide; meanwhile US sits at spot 75 with only 1/4 of Senate seats held by women. The contrast is eye-catching because Mexico didnt give women voting rights until the 50s
The change in Mexico started back in the 90s with smart law-making: they made rules about how many women should run for office. Hereʼs how it went:
- First they suggested 30% women candidates
- Then they made it a must-do rule
- Next they raised it to 40%
- Finally they made it 50-50
- Last step: they applied it to all government branches
Its interesting that 61% of Mexicans wanted a woman president – even though many say theres lots of machismo in their society. The Patricia Mercado case shows a key point: “They give me the chair but they dont give me a space“ [[former senator in 60s said this]]
But theres a catch – while women got political seats real power is different. Mexico ranks low in business leadership with just 12% women on company boards; US has 28%. Plus violence against women is still a big problem: about 10 women are killed daily and almost no-one gets punished for domestic violence
The US takes a different path: it doesnt have any quota rules and didnt sign the UN womens rights convention. Recent politics show more push-back: JD Vance even wanted to remove diversity programs calling them “destructive ideology“
Both Sheinbaum and Harris face similar challenges – people keep asking if they can lead on their own. Sheinbaum started with a reform package for womens rights but experts say: real change needs more than just words on paper