Mexico will likely have its first female president
Listen to the story (New Zealand accent)
Mexico is getting ready for a surprising election next year. The two main political parties have chosen women as their presidential candidates.
This is unexpected in the patriarchal country.
The opposition party, called the Broad Front for Mexico, has picked Xóchitl Gálvez, a senator, to lead the party.
The ruling party, the Morena party, has chosen Claudia Sheinbaum, who used to be the mayor of Mexico City, as their candidate.
Sheinbaum is 61 years old, and she used to work as an environmental engineer. She was the first Jewish mayor of Mexico City and is a good friend of the current president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who's also a member of the party.
Gálvez is 60 years old and used to be a computer engineer before she started her own tech company. She began her career in politics as the head of the National Institute of Indigenous Peoples. She comes from a poor part of Mexico where she helped her family sell street food.
Women have been making big progress in Mexican politics lately. Since 2021, almost half of the lawmakers are women. Currently, a woman is the head of the highest court in Mexico, the Mexican Supreme Court.
To compare, the United States ranks 71st in the world for women in politics, whereas Mexico ranks 5th.
Recent polls show that Sheinbaum is more popular with 44% support, according to Mexico's Reforma newspaper. Gálvez is next with 27% support. The presidential election is scheduled for June next year, and will be a big moment in Mexico's history.
Vocabulary32 words
- Election
- a process or event in which people vote to choose a leader or winner
- Main
- the most important or the biggest;
- Party (political party)
- an organization of people with the same political views; a group of people who work together to get political power
- Presidential
- Relating to the president of a country; related to the leader of a country
- Candidate
- person who wants to be chosen for a job; A person who is running for office
- Unexpected
- Not expected or happening by chance; something that happens when you didn't think it would
- Patriarchal
- a place or a situation where men are usually in charge; A society or system in which men have more power than women
- Opposition party
- a group of people who are not in charge and have different ideas than the leaders; The party that is not in power
- Party (political party)
- an organization of people with the same political views; a group of people who work together to get political power
- Senator
- someone who helps make the laws for a state or a country;
- Lead
- To be in charge or to guide others
- Ruling party
- The party that is currently in power and makes decisions;
- Environmental
- related to the natural world, the place we live, the area around us, nature
- Engineer
- a person who designs, builds, and/or maintains engines, machines, buildings, computer systems, etc.
- Jewish
- A person who follows the Jewish religion or is of Jewish descent
- Mayor
- the leader or person in charge of a city
- Current
- now; happening or being used or done now;
- Tech company (technology)
- a company that makes new technology or software; a company with digital services or products
- Career
- A person's occupation or profession; the job or jobs you have over your whole life
- Politics
- the activities of the government or politicians; the art or science of government
- Head
- leader, top person, boss
- Poor
- having little money and few or no possessions
- Street food
- Food that is sold in the streets or from carts
- Make progress
- To improve or get better over time; to get better at something; to move forward
- Lawmaker
- a person, usually a politician, who makes laws; legislator;
- Court
- an agency or part of government with judges who decide what is right or wrong
- Compare
- To look at two or more things and see how they are similar or different
- Rank
- To put things in order from the best to the worst or from the most important to the least important
- Poll
- a survey; questionnaire; questions for a group of people to understand their opinion
- Show
- to prove something or make the truth or existence of something known; confirm; demonstrate; to display; to represent
- Popular
- Liked by many people
- According to
- as ‘someone’ said; as stated by ‘someone’; in the opinion of ‘someone’
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Mexico is getting ready for a _____ election next year. The two main political _____ have chosen women as their presidential candidates.
This is _____ in the patriarchal country.
The opposition party, _____ the Broad Front for Mexico, has picked Xóchitl Gálvez, a senator, to _____ the party.
The ruling party, the Morena _____, has chosen Claudia Sheinbaum, who used to be the _____ of Mexico City, as their candidate.
Sheinbaum _____ 61 years old, and she used to work as an environmental engineer. She _____ the first Jewish mayor of Mexico City and is a good friend of the _____president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who's also a member _____ the party.
Gálvez is 60 years old and _____ to be a computer engineer before she started her _____ tech company. She began her career in politics _____ the head of the National Institute of Indigenous Peoples. She comes from a poor _____ of Mexico where she helped her family sell _____ food.
Women have been _____ big progress in Mexican politics lately. Since 2021, almost _____ of the lawmakers are women. Currently, a woman is the head of the _____ court in Mexico, the Mexican Supreme Court.
To _____, the United States ranks 71st in the world for women in _____, whereas Mexico ranks 5th.
Recent polls show that Sheinbaum is _____ popular with 44% support, according to Mexico's Reforma _____. Gálvez is next with 27% support. The presidential _____is scheduled for June next year, and will be a big moment in Mexico's _____.
Discussion questions
- Do you think women's increasing participation in Mexican politics is a positive development? Why or why not?
- How might the election of a woman as president impact Mexico's politics and society?
- How important is it for countries to have women in leadership roles? What benefits can it bring to a nation?
- Are there many women in politics in your country?
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