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Mexico elects Claudia Sheinbaum as first woman president
Claudia Sheinbaum has been elected as Mexico’s first woman president in an historic landslide win.
Mexico’s official electoral authority said preliminary results showed the 61-year-old former mayor of Mexico City winning between 58% and 60% of the vote in Sunday’s election.
That gives her a lead of about 30 percentage points over her main rival, businesswoman Xóchitl Gálvez.
Ms Sheinbaum will replace her mentor, outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, on 1 October.
The election of a woman to the highest office was an emotional moment for some [BBC]
Ms Sheinbaum, a former energy scientist, has promised continuity, saying that she will continue to build on the “advances” made by President López Obrador, further building on the welfare programmes which have made the outgoing president very popular.
But in her victory speech she also highlighted what has set this Mexican election apart from previous ones. She told cheering voters: “For the first time in the 200 years of the [Mexican] Republic, I will become the first woman president of Mexico.”
She said it was an achievement not just for her but for all women. “I’ve said it from the start, this is not just about me getting [to the top office], it’s about all of us getting here.”
She added: “I won’t fail you.”
Ms Sheinbaum also thanked her rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, who has conceded victory.
Prior to running for president, Ms Sheinbaum was mayor of Mexico City, one of the most influential political positions in the country and one that is seen as paving the way for the presidency.
Ms Sheinbaum, whose Jewish maternal grandparents immigrated to Mexico from Bulgaria fleeing the Nazis, had an illustrious career as a scientist before delving into politics. Her paternal grandparents hailed from Lithuania.
Both of her parents were scientists and Ms Sheinbaum studied physics before going on to receive a doctorate in energy engineering. She spent years at a renowned research lab in California studying Mexican energy consumption patterns and became an expert on climate change.
That experience and her student activism eventually earned her the position of secretary of the environment for Mexico City at the time when Andrés Manuel López Obrador was mayor of the capital. In 2018 she became the first female mayor of Mexico City, a post she held until 2023, when she stepped down to run for president.
The election, which pitted Ms Sheinbaum against Ms Gálvez, has been described as a sea change for women in Mexico.
Edelmira Montiel, 87, said that she was grateful to be alive to see a woman elected to the top office. “Before, we couldn’t even vote, and when you could, it was to vote for the person your husband told you to vote for. Thank God that has changed and I get to live it,” she told Reuters news agency, referring to the fact that women were only allowed to vote in national elections in 1953.
While the fact that the two front-runners were women was widely celebrated, the campaign was marred by violent attacks.
As well as a new president, voters were also electing all members of Mexico’s Congress and governors in eight states, the head of Mexico City’s government, and thousands of local officials.
And it was local candidates in particular who were targeted in the run-up to the vote. The government says more than 20 were killed across Mexico, although other surveys put the total at 37.
Ms Gálvez harshly criticised the government and her rival in the presidential race for the violence which blights large parts of Mexico.
She promised to be “the bravest president, a president who does confront crime” if elected, but failed to provide many details about how she would tackle the powerful criminal cartels which are behind much of the violence.
After Ms Sheinbaum’s lead became unassailable, Ms Gálvez called her. “I told her I saw a Mexico with a lot of pain and violence. I wished that she could solve the severe problems our people have,” Ms Gálvez said of the call.
How to tackle Mexico’s violent cartels is going to be one of the many challenges facing Ms Sheinbaum when she takes up office. She has said that it is important to tackle what she says are the roots of the violence and has promised to invest in welfare programmes to prevent poor young Mexicans from being recruited by criminal groups.
On relations with Mexico’s northern neighbour, the United States, which at times have been testy under her predecessor in office, she said she would ensure there would be “a relationship of friendship, mutual respect and equality”.
But in a reference to the many Mexicans living and working in the US, she promised to “always defend the Mexicans who are on the other side of the border”.
Relations between the US and Mexico suffered under Mr López Obrador, who has been in power since 2018. The outspoken leader was barred from running for a second term under Mexico’s constitution, which limits presidents to a single six-year-term.
He threw his weight behind Ms Sheinbaum instead.
Having the backing of the popular president, who has an approval rate of close to 60%, gave Ms Sheinbaum’s campaign a huge boost. Many of those voting for her said they backed Morena’s programme to alleviate poverty and wanted to see it continued.
[BBC]
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Physical development must be matched by the enrichment of people’s inner lives through aesthetics and culture – PM
Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya stated that while a country develops its roads, buildings and economy, the inner lives of its people must also be enriched through aesthetics, culture and creativity. Development cannot be measured solely by improvements in physical resources, and the empathy and the appreciation of the arts is a key aspiration of the new era of renaissance.
The Prime Minister made these remarks while inaugurating the ’Aluth Wessa’ Cultural Festival and Exhibition, organised jointly by the Kandy District Secretariat, the Department of Cultural Affairs and the Kandyan Cultural Center on 15 October at the Kandy District Secretariat.
During the event, the Prime Minister also presented awards to artists from the Kandy District in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the arts.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister further stated: “Kandy is a place where we can best experience the value of our country’s historical, artistic and cultural heritage. The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, the wood carvings of Embekka, the murals of Degaldoruwa, the Kandyan dance tradition, and the contributions of renowned artists such as Pani Bharath, Dr. Ananda Coomaraswamy and Minnette de Silva have helped shape a distinctive cultural identity unique to Kandy.
During the recent disaster, when the people of Kandy faced immense difficulties, people from districts such as Galle, Matara and Kalutara voluntarily came forward to extend tremendous support. Their empathy and commitment deserve our sincere appreciation. Following the disaster, several initiatives are already progressing rapidly to help Kandy recover and rebuild. These include restoring the Upcountry railway line, repairing damaged houses and rehabilitating historic temples that were destroyed through the Central Cultural Fund. Through our education reforms, we aspire to nurture a generation that goes beyond professional knowledge and skills, developing artistic sensitivity alongside human values and compassion.”
The event was attended by the Most Venerable Naramapanawe Ananda Thero, Anunayake of the Asgiri Chapter of the Siyamopali Maha Nikaya and Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, along with members of the Maha Sangha and other religious leaders. Also present were Central Province Governor Dr. Suranga Fernando, Members of Parliament Jagath Manuwarana, Thanura Dissanayake, Thushari Jayasinghe and E. M. Basnayake; the Mayor and local councillors, Kandy District Secretary Indika Udawatta, Divisional Secretaries, public officials, artists, parents, and children.
(Prime Minister’s Media Division)
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Heavy showers above 100 mm are likely at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Central, and North-western provinces and in Anuradhapura district.
WEATHER FORECAST FOR 14 OCTOBER 2026
Issued at 05.30 a.m. on 14 October 2026 by the Department of Meteorology
Due to a low-level atmospheric disturbance persisting in the Bay of Bengal near Sri Lanka, cloudy skies and increased rainfall are expected to continue over the island.
Misty conditions can be expected at some places in the Sabaragamuwa, Central and Uva provinces during the early hours of the morning.
Showers or thundershowers will occur at times in the Northern, Eastern, Southern and Western provinces. Showers or thundershowers will occur in other parts of the island after 1.00 p.m.
Heavy showers above 100 mm are likely at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Central, and North-western provinces and in Anuradhapura district while fairly heavy showers above 75 mm are likely at some places in other areas of the island.
The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damage caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.
Missiles and drones have been intercepted over Riyadh after the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen struck a fuel depot near the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, its spokesperson says.
Maj Gen Turki al-Maliki said several projectiles targeting the Saudi capital and other cities were intercepted after the coalition carried out a strike on the Yemen Petroleum Company’s al-Sabaha facility on Tuesday night.
The Houthis warned they would target the airport and Aramco refinery in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, and Aramco’s headquarters in the eastern city of Dammam.
Al-Maliki later said missiles targeting cities including Dammam had been intercepted, while shrapnel had fallen in a residential area in Dhahran.
It came as the Saudi cabinet, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, said the Iran-backed group would “bear the consequences” of its recent deadly attacks on the kingdom.
Thirteen people were killed when a missile hit King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday, while another person was killed in a similar attack there the following day.
On Tuesday, the coalition said its forces had destroyed three drones north of Riyadh.
The Houthis have said they are targeting airports, oil and gas facilities, and military bases in Saudi Arabia with missiles and drones in response to deadly Saudi strikes on territory that they control in western Yemen, including Sanaa.
The Saudi-led coalition has been providing air support for Yemeni pro-government forces mounting an offensive on Yemen’s Red Sea coast and several other front lines.
A correspondent for AFP news agency reported that queues formed at petrol stations in Sanaa on Tuesday afternoon following the coalition’s warning of an impending operation against the al-Sabaha oil facility, with many residents worried about shortages.
The Yemen Petroleum Company, which is run by the Houthis, issued a statement that sought to reassure them, saying the facility “does not contain any stock of petroleum products”.
The company also said it had “taken all necessary precautionary measures to address any emergency, ensuring the stability of the supply situation and the continued meeting of citizens’ needs in a normal manner”.
After al-Maliki confirmed the strike, first reported by Houthi media, explosions were heard over Riyadh and other Saudi cities, with al-Maliki reporting four missiles and two drones had been intercepted near the capital.
Yemen has been devastated by a civil war that began in 2014, when the Houthis ousted the internationally-recognised government from Sanaa. The conflict escalated in 2015, after the Saudi-led coalition of Arab states intervened in an attempt to restore the government’s rule.
A four-year-old informal ceasefire began to unravel in July, when the Houthis announced a “maritime embargo” against Saudi Arabia and began missile and drone attacks on Saudi airports, oil facilities and tankers in the Red Sea.
The Houthis said they were retaliating for what they call a Saudi blockade of their territory, as well as an air strike on Sanaa airport that they blamed on the kingdom.
The conflict escalated in September after the Houthis seized part of Yemen’s south-western Red Sea coast near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a chokepoint for global shipping. Their advance contributed to a rise in oil prices following six months of war between the US, Israel and Iran.
US President Donald Trump said on Truth Social on Tuesday the Houthis were “behaving very badly… and purposefully trying to drive up Oil Prices”.
Speaking to reporters, he did not answer a question on whether he’d made a decision to help the Saudis retaliate against them, but said he “might” ask Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to intervene.
Last week, pro-government forces said they had regained control of territory overlooking Bab al-Mandab after launching a major counter-offensive with the support of Saudi air strikes.
Hundreds of people have reportedly been killed in Yemen since August. The UN’s human rights office says they include at least 54 civilians, half of them children.
More than 216,000 people have also been displaced across the country, and suspected cholera cases have tripled in three weeks, rising from 217 to 647, according to the UN.
[BBC]
Physical development must be matched by the enrichment of people’s inner lives through aesthetics and culture – PM
Review of the operations of the 1818 Hotline introduced to report drug-related information
Showers in the Western, Southern, Central, Sabaragamuwa, North-Western and Northern provinces and in the Anuradhapura District
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