Based on predictions: - Mexico's presidential election’s frontrunner is the government nominee.
Claudia Sheinbaum, a government candidate, is predicted to win Mexico's presidential election as per latest polls. If she indeed becomes the president, she'll be the first female leader of the most populous Spanish-speaking nation. El Financiero economic newspaper and Televisa TV broadcaster suggest she is the frontrunner. Officially, we can expect the first results late in the evening. Sadly, two people lost their lives in violent incidents near the voting centers.
Sheinbaum is closely associated with left-populist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who isn't eligible for re-election as per the constitution. Both leaders belong to the leftist party Morena. Sheinbaum is a trained physicist and former mayor of Mexico City.
For the first time in Mexican history, two women contested for the roles of head of state and government. Sheinbaum's primary competitor was Zóchitl Gálvez, representing the coalition of three major opposition parties. Jorge Alvarez Máynez, representing a smaller party, had zero chances of victory. Victory simply required a simple majority.
It was the largest voting day for the second-largest economy in Latin America with approximately 130 million people, and there were long queues at polling stations. At least 20,000 seats were up for election, including the governorships of eight out of 31 federal states and the capital territory. Over 100 million citizens had the right to vote. The new leader will formally take office on October 1st.
Some polling stations experienced violence. In the central states of Puebla and Mexico, along with a Monterrey suburb, incidents took place where shots were reportedly fired, with at least one death in both cases.
In Puebla, the state electoral authority, IEE, indicated that a station in the municipality of Tlapanalá couldn't open since the ballots were stolen. Voting had to be halted in Coyomeapan due to the violence.
In the southern state of Chiapas, the elections were fully suspended in the cities of Chicomuselo and Pantelhó, thanks to the area's drug cartel-related violence. The election campaign was also filled with violence. Many candidates were assassinated. Authorities often suspect criminal groups participating in regional power plays behind these attacks.
