L’elezione di Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo alla Presidenza in Messico. Tra ritorno del “maximato” e regressione democratica

The June 2, 2024, elections represented a historic milestone for Mexico, awarding the presidential position to a woman, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo. In addition, female Governors were elected in the States of Guanajuato, Morelos and Veracruz, and both the federal and state Legislatures, as well as all municipal Assemblies, were perfectly equal. At the same time, this electoral round raises some doubts for the democratic tenure of the State, not only because of the significant majority that the presidential party achieved in the Houses of Parliament, but also because of other factors such as the centrality held by the presidency in the Mexican institutional design, the characteristics of the presidential election, and the concrete dynamics of the form of government, particularly those that have characterized López Obrador’s presidential mandate. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to illustrate the close link between the electoral system and institutional functioning in Mexico, dwelling on the aforementioned factors, in order to be able to sketch a picture of the political situation inherited by President Sheinbaum and sketch some possible scenarios for his term in office.