UNTIL this year, no woman had ever been the presidential candidate for any of Mexico’s main political parties. That changed on February 5th, when Josefina Vázquez Mota, a former secretary of education and of social development, won the primary of the conservative National Action Party (PAN). “I will be Mexico’s first presidenta” (female president), she said in her victory speech.
Ms Vázquez is a clear underdog in the July 1st election. Polls taken before the primary put the centrist Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) nearly 20 points ahead of the ruling PAN (see chart). Voters have tired of the PAN, which has presided over slow growth and rising violence during 11 years in power. Ms Vázquez could even finish third behind Andrés Manuel López Obrador of the Party of the Democratic Revolution, a left-winger who narrowly lost the 2006 race.
No one knows if Mexico’s supposedly macho voters are open to a female candidate. Women only gained the right to vote in 1953. But Mexican politics is not especially male-dominated: women hold over a quarter of congressional seats. That is a higher proportion than America’s and twice as high as the share in Brazil, which elected a female president in 2010.
Ms Vázquez has said she considers her sex an advantage. It certainly helps to distinguish her from Felipe Calderón, the unpopular current president and a fellow PAN member. According to Mitofsky, a polling firm, women outnumber men by a fifth among her supporters.
Meanwhile, her rivals’ attempts to woo female voters have not gone well. The PRI’s handsome Enrique Peña Nieto, whose rallies draw throngs of swooning señoritas, was thought to have an edge with them. But when he was recently asked if he knew the price of meat and tortillas, he replied that he was not “the lady of the house”. A few weeks later an ex-girlfriend accused him of neglecting children he fathered outside marriage. The fiery Mr López has tried to soften his image by promising a “loving republic”. But women seem unmoved. A majority of both candidates’ fans are male.
Women have always been less likely to vote than men in Mexico. Might that change this year? The gender gap has disappeared in school-attendance and literacy rates. A third of women work outside the home, helped by a fall in the fertility rate from nearly seven children per woman in the 1960s to around two today. But younger Mexicans of both sexes are less likely to vote than others; and Ms Vázquez’s opposition to abortion may not appeal to the new generation of empowered women. She clearly needs their support to close the gap.
No one knows if Mexico’s supposedly macho voters are open to a female candidate. Women only gained the right to vote in 1953. But Mexican politics is not especially male-dominated: women hold over a quarter of congressional seats. That is a higher proportion than America’s and twice as high as the share in Brazil, which elected a female president in 2010.
Ms Vázquez has said she considers her sex an advantage. It certainly helps to distinguish her from Felipe Calderón, the unpopular current president and a fellow PAN member. According to Mitofsky, a polling firm, women outnumber men by a fifth among her supporters.
Meanwhile, her rivals’ attempts to woo female voters have not gone well. The PRI’s handsome Enrique Peña Nieto, whose rallies draw throngs of swooning señoritas, was thought to have an edge with them. But when he was recently asked if he knew the price of meat and tortillas, he replied that he was not “the lady of the house”. A few weeks later an ex-girlfriend accused him of neglecting children he fathered outside marriage. The fiery Mr López has tried to soften his image by promising a “loving republic”. But women seem unmoved. A majority of both candidates’ fans are male.
Women have always been less likely to vote than men in Mexico. Might that change this year? The gender gap has disappeared in school-attendance and literacy rates. A third of women work outside the home, helped by a fall in the fertility rate from nearly seven children per woman in the 1960s to around two today. But younger Mexicans of both sexes are less likely to vote than others; and Ms Vázquez’s opposition to abortion may not appeal to the new generation of empowered women. She clearly needs their support to close the gap.
I honestly believe that anything a man can do, so can a woman, and sometime even better. We have had female candidates run for presidency in the United States although many have not made it past the first primaries. I believe that their is hope for women in government and there has been all around the world. I think that if a woman became president in Mexico it would send waves of press around America since Mexico is our neighbor. I give her the best of luck and hope to see her progress in the future. I was astonished to know that Brazil had a female president, and I think that is awesome. While as a female I am gun-ho for anything a man can do a woman can do better, (hahah), I do know that there are many people against the idea of having a female president because many believe that a female president would be too emotional and not aggressive. I believe that it would be hard for the United States which has such high status among the world to please every country in the UN with a female president since many countries still dehumanize women in many ways. But I do believe that it would make a point, and a good point at that, women are capable of achieving and doing anything a man can do. I do not think that gender should ever disavow someones status and when people begin to view someone based on their gender it is at times in the form of bigotry rather than actual truth.
ReplyDeleteIt is a great step that women currently hold over a quarter of the seats in congress, which is higher than Americas congress! I feel that Ms Vazquez has a strong chance of winning the election, especially if the other 2 male candidates are not favored because of their questionable attitudes and moral decisions to say the least. Women voters will increase for this election no doubt. Hopefully the youth will become more involved and realize the importance of voting, a privilege to being a citizen with constitutional rights. Women empowerment through leadership is a strong message to the youth and to future generations. I recall doing a spanish 101 presentation on Costa Rica after visiting the country. Ms Laura Chinchilla is currently the first female president of Costa Rica, and she has done a fine job so far. More power to female presidents in latin America!
ReplyDeleteI think any person can become president whither it be a male or a female. All it takes is persistence, confidence, and to be aggressive and that is exactly what Ms Vázquez is doing. She is doing anything it takes to get what she wants and that is very respectful. it would be such a change in the world if she was to become president of Mexico. i think it would change the way the united states sees there president. she is a very powerful women and has what it takes to make it to the top.
ReplyDeleteIt will be very interesting to see the results of this poetical race. I don't personally think it sounds like Vasquez will be the likely winner because of her lower support and the fact that she is third in the race as of right now. I don't think enough social change will occur between now and July to make a huge difference in voter turn out, or in the ballots being cast. Her only chance at a win may be to get the younger generation excited about her, or to get the voters who are on the fence about who to vote for. The female brazilian president may be a great ally to Vasquez even if she is just a rallying point.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure that Josefina Vázquez Mota will win the election. I think that although times are evolving, Josefina does not have enough support to win. However, I do think that even having a woman in the running is a step in the right direction. I agree with Bianca when she said that she was surprised that Brazil had a woman president. I had no idea that Brazil had a woman president, but I think that is a great example for the rest of the world to follow. There are so many places around the world that still deprive women of the same rights as men. Some countries treat women as lower class citizens, while others are electing them as president. Although over the years women have started to gain more rights, there is still room for improvement. I think that if Josefina won the election it would encourage younger women to get involved in politics and the government. Getting the younger generation of women involved in the government might make people more open to women being in a presidential race and hopefully as president. Strangely enough, I was just having a conversation with someone yesterday about a woman becoming president. My guy friend argued that he didn't think a woman should be president because they are emotional. Naturally, I disagreed. Also, at the Campus Movie Festival yesterday, one of the student made films was about how society sees women in politics and the government. There were countless clips of men in the government bashing women involved in the government. It was sad to see that these men didn't support the women, simply because they were women. Possibly the saddest clip was of Hilary Clinton publicly speaking and she had to stop because some man was holding a sign and loudly yelling: "Iron my shit!". It was really upsetting to see this! Overall, I think that any woman running for president or any position in the government has the chance to change the world and their view on women.
ReplyDeleteI think this election is going to be quite interesting to see who wins. It's great that a women is stepping up for presidency. I'm not sure who could win I think that both of them have a good chance. Having a women president would change how others view women and that they are strong and confident. In many places today around the world women are not considered equal to men. If Josefina Vázquez Mota wins this election this possibly could change how people view women in Latin America countries.
ReplyDeleteMelissa Patel; SPN 110
First of all, I think it is awesome that over a quarter of congressional seats are held by women and that this is a step in the right direction for gender equality. However, I did not know that women occupy less than a quarter of congressional seats in the United States. This shows me that the amount of progress we think we have made in the United States might not equal the amount of progress we actually have made. For example, consider that women still make around $0.70 per $1.00 made by men. I just had a discussion about gender in my anthropology class last week, and the point was brought up that sometimes, when women accomplish something that is traditionally seen as a "man's job" (i.e. success in engineering, mathematics, or running for office), she is seen as triumphing for her gender, often praised in an over-the-top manner. The article even says that Ms. Vázquez considers her sex an advantage. I think until we can eliminate this kind of thinking and idea in both men and women, we can not achieve true equality.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I think it is awesome that over a quarter of congressional seats are held by women and that this is a step in the right direction for gender equality. However, I did not know that women occupy less than a quarter of congressional seats in the United States. This shows me that the amount of progress we think we have made in the United States might not equal the amount of progress we actually have made. For example, consider that women still make around $0.70 per $1.00 made by men. I just had a discussion about gender in my anthropology class last week, and the point was brought up that sometimes, when women accomplish something that is traditionally seen as a "man's job" (i.e. success in engineering, mathematics, or running for office), she is seen as triumphing for her gender, often praised in an over-the-top manner. The article even says that Ms. Vázquez considers her sex an advantage. I think until we can eliminate this kind of thinking and idea in both men and women, we can not achieve true equality.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is awesome that in Mexico women hold over a quarter of congressional seats. However, I was surprised to learn that in the United States women held less than a quarter of congressional seats. This, to me, says that we have made less progress than we like to think we have made in working toward gender equality. For example, women still earn about $0.70 for every $1.00 a man makes. We just had a discussion in my anthropology class about gender, and the point was brought up that women, when they are successful in a field that is traditionally considered a field for a man (i.e. engineering, mathematics, or running for office), they are overly praised or considered as an advancement for their gender. The article even says that Ms Vázquez says she considers her sex an advantage. I think that it is until we can eliminate this kind of thinking or idea in men and women, we can not achieve gender equality.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Josefina Vázquez Mota has a very high chance of winning in the 2012 election. Yes she maybe in third place but she a lot of good things going for her right now, for example how women hold over a quarter of congressional seats. This defiantly gives her an advantage that the other candidates don't have. She is also the only woman in the race for presidency, which allows for a different kind of different kind of voters. I think that women today are doing get things and Josefina Vázquez Mota has many supporters behind her to pull off her win.
ReplyDeleteWomen’s role in politics has only begun to emerge over the past century for most countries, as women have gained rights and independence. In Mexico, women did not even gain the right to vote until 1953, which is quite astounding when you consider that a woman is currently running in their presidential elections. That woman is Josefina Vázquez Mota, who was born only ten years after women gained the right to vote. It is also surprising that women hold over a quarter of congressional seats in Mexico, a more equal ratio than exists here in the United States. So, though it took women quite some time to be recognized in the political circle of Mexico, as soon as were recognized, they made enormous leaps towards equal representation in government.
ReplyDeleteKatelyn Ruppert
SPN 110 12pm
For me, the amount of seats women control in politics does not matter. What does matter is the position a woman politician holds and how she uses her political power to make a difference in the world. I think it is really important that we realize that the amount of women already in congressional positions does not make a difference if a woman can become president or not. This is clearly demonstrated as Brazil has a female president who has used her position to improve domestic and international issues for Brazil. Though she is currently not in the lead, it is still possible for Vázquez to become the first woman president in Mexico. Even if she fails at first, I feel it will inspire more woman to seek high power political positions and a woman will eventually become president as the idea becomes widely accepted.
ReplyDeleteFor me, the amount of seats women control in politics does not matter. What does matter is the position a woman politician holds and how she uses her political power to make a difference in the world. I think it is really important that we realize that the amount of women already in congressional positions does not make a difference if a woman can become president or not. This is clearly demonstrated as Brazil has a female president who has used her position to improve domestic and international issues for Brazil. Though she is currently not in the lead, it is still possible for Vázquez to become the first woman president in Mexico. Even if she fails at first, I feel it will inspire more woman to seek high power political positions and a woman will eventually become president as the idea becomes widely accepted.
ReplyDeleteTo me, this article outlines a great deal of positive change in Mexico. Not only is there a viable female candidate for the presidency, but women all over Mexico are becoming more empowered. Ms. Vázquez appears to be a symbol of the gender reform taking place. Not only are Mexican women gaining control of their own lives (by having fewer children and working more), but they are also taking control of their voice by participating more in politics. The disappearing gender gap in school attendance and literacy rates is an encouraging sign that future generations of Mexican women will be able to continue progress in Mexico. Hopefully Ms. Vázquez will be able to represent the women of Mexico, and all citizens of Mexico for that matter, as their next president.
ReplyDeleteE. Dunkel SPN 210G MWF 1pm
To me, this article outlines a great deal of positive change in Mexico. Not only is there a viable female candidate for the presidency, but women all over Mexico are becoming more empowered. Ms. Vázquez appears to be a symbol of the gender reform taking place. Not only are Mexican women gaining control of their own lives (by having fewer children and working more), but they are also taking control of their voice by participating more in politics. The disappearing gender gap in school attendance and literacy rates is an encouraging sign that future generations of Mexican women will be able to continue progress in Mexico. Hopefully Ms. Vázquez will be able to represent the women of Mexico, and all citizens of Mexico for that matter, as their next president.
ReplyDeleteE. Dunkel SPN 210G MWF 1pm
I think that this is an issue of precedent. As men have traditionally held office, they will continue to hold most government positions and be voted in by both men and women. At the same time, I believe people are and will be more progressive and vote more female candidates into power. Men and women are traditionally seen as different, especially in office. However, I think there isn't much real difference. A woman can succeed and fail just as much as a man can and vice versa. For women and the progressive movement, I think this is a huge step. As for policy, I doubt anything will change. Women will still hold the same believes as men do. Just because a woman is in charge doesn't mean things will improve or worsen. In the end, politically, it's a non issue.
ReplyDeleteI think that this article is very informative as it highlights a prominent woman in Latin America who aspires to be president of Mexico, Josefina Vázquez Mota. I did not know that women could not vote in Mexico until 1953 and with a woman desiring to attain the office of the presidency, things have surely come a long way. It is neat how this candidate considers being female her advantage against the other candidates; it sets her apart. It will be quite interesting to see how this election plays out and how Mexico continues to react to the possibility of a woman becoming president.
ReplyDeleteAbove comment (comment associated with Meredith L) is composed by Meredith Lax, SPN 210G, 1 pm class MWF
ReplyDeleteAs Americans, I feel like sometimes we forget that the rest of the world is progressing as well. It slips our minds that when women were given the right to vote in the in the 20s other countries with the same political system did not grant the same freedoms. With Mexico being so close it is a shame that we are not up to date with their political stories. I was unaware that women were granted the right to vote in 1953 in Mexico and it is even better that a women is actually in the presidential race. I am fully interested in the turn out of the election. I think it would be quite revolutionary if she actually gets elected. America always pride itself for acceptance and diversity and yet we just elected an African-American president and no women have been in the actual presidential race. I think we forget that Mexico is developing along with us and there is a possibility they could surpass us in other areas.
ReplyDeleteI really loved this article! It makes me so happy to hear about women changing history. The things that Ms. Vasquez has accomplished in her lifetime are major. I am not really sure if she is aware of how much she has changed history for so many women to come behind. It is empowering to read about the types of things that women accomplish on a daily basis. As a gender, we have progressed drastically over the years and continue to do so. This is really an amazing article that in my opinion should be a required reading for many young girls all over the world.
ReplyDeleteAsia Booker
1:00-1:50 MWF