Claudia Olivos

Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, born in 1962, is a Mexican politician, scientist, and academic who currently serves as the president of Mexico, a position she assumed in 2024. She is notable as the first woman and the first Jewish person to hold this office. Before becoming president, Sheinbaum earned a Ph.D. in energy engineering from UNAM and contributed to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Her political career began with the Party of the Democratic Revolution before she joined Andrés Manuel López Obrador's Morena party. She served as the head of government for Mexico City from 2018 to 2023, implementing various social programs and managing significant crises. Her presidency has seen the enactment of constitutional reforms aimed at strengthening social programs, state control over energy, and universal healthcare.

Born in Mexico City in 1962 to parents involved in Mexican left-wing movements, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo comes from a Mexican Jewish family with roots in Lithuania and Bulgaria. Her father was a chemist and her mother a biologist who became an academic. Sheinbaum pursued a strong scientific education, earning a bachelor's degree in physics, followed by a master's and a Ph.D. in energy engineering from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). Her doctoral research, conducted partly at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, focused on energy use in the transportation and building sectors in Mexico. She has authored numerous scientific articles and contributed significantly to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's assessment reports on climate change mitigation.

Sheinbaum's political journey began as a student activist, eventually joining the Party of the Democratic Revolution. She later served as the Secretary of the Environment for the Federal District under Andrés Manuel López Obrador, overseeing infrastructure projects like the Metrobús. In 2014, she joined López Obrador's Morena party. She was elected mayor of the Tlalpan borough in 2015. As mayor, her administration faced scrutiny regarding the demolition of a chapel and the collapse of a school during an earthquake, with questions raised about building permits and oversight. In 2018, she was elected Head of Government of Mexico City, a role she held until 2023, during which she focused on security, public transport, and social programs, while also navigating the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2024, Claudia Sheinbaum was elected president of Mexico, marking a historic moment as the first woman and first Jewish person to hold the office. Her administration has pursued a legislative agenda supported by a strong majority, enacting constitutional reforms. These reforms include enshrining social programs into the constitution, increasing the minimum wage above inflation, mandating universal healthcare, and reversing aspects of energy reform to enhance state control over the energy sector. Her presidency builds upon her background as a scientist and her experience in public administration, aiming to address key national challenges.