Claudia Sheinbaum was sworn in as Mexico’s first female president Election News

Sheinbaum begins a six-year term, taking over from Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

Claudia Sheinbaum was sworn in as the first female president of Mexico.

Sheinbaum took over from outgoing president – and shut down Morena’s party ally – Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador at the inauguration ceremony of the country’s Congress on Tuesday.

The 62-year-old climate scientist and former mayor of Mexico City is expected to serve a six-year term, ending in 2030.

Sheinbaum took the oath of office in front of members of parliament, as his supporters chanted “President! President!” and “Long live Mexico!”

“Now is the time for change, now is the time for women,” Sheinbaum said.

He enters the office with his powerful party in the lower house of the legislature, and almost the same as the Senate, and immediately sought to reassure investors, saying that investment will be safe in Mexico.

Sheinbaum will need to contend with some last-minute measures by Lopez Obrador, namely a controversial judicial overhaul that will see federal judges — including those on the Supreme Court — elected by popular vote. The constitutional change has upset both legal independence advocates and investors.

The incoming president will also look to the US election on November 5 that could change the relationship with the main trade partner Mexico.

Later in November, he will present his government’s first budget, which may provide clues as to whether Sheinbaum can make good on commitments to reduce the country’s growing deficit while maintaining popular welfare spending and expensive anti-crime programs.

That job comes at a time when Mexico’s economy, Latin America’s second-largest, is forecast to slow.

A historic presidency

Sheinbaum’s inauguration is the culmination of a decade of growth in Mexican politics, coinciding with her historic election as the first woman to lead Mexico City.

Sheinbaum, the daughter of education activists, also leans on a history-making presidency.

In a social media post on Monday, he unveiled a sign showing a woman in profile holding up a Mexican flag, her hair pulled back in a ponytail. The hairstyle has become Sheinbaum’s signature style.

“A young Mexican woman will be the symbol of the Mexican government,” Sheinbaum wrote.

Mexico remains one of the most conservative countries in Latin America, as its 65 presidents since Spain’s independence have all been men.

As mayor of Mexico City, Sheinbaum built a reputation for a data-driven approach to leadership, earning credit for cutting the city’s homicide rate in half.

His policies sought to improve security spending on an expanded police force with higher salaries. He vowed to do this again throughout Mexico, which continues to suffer from high crime rates and the heavy influence of powerful drug cartels. Critics have questioned how true those promises will be.

At the same time, Sheinbaum promised to continue the social spending pension policies and youth scholarships promoted by his popular predecessor Lopez Obrador.

After studying energy engineering, and later being appointed to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change of the UN, Sheinbaum has sought careful balance in environmental systems.

He said he would protect the monopoly of state-owned oil and power companies in Mexico, while expressing interest in transitioning to renewable energy projects.

Sheinbaum shared the Nobel Peace Prize with former US Vice President Al Gore in 2007 for his climate work.

Prior to that, he was Lopez Obrador’s environmental chief when he served as mayor of Mexico City. He served as chief spokesman for Lopez Orador’s unsuccessful 2006 campaign.