Supporters began gathering at dawn to celebrate the inauguration of the new leader of the world’s most populous Spanish-speaking country, home to 129 million people, which has had 65 male presidents since independence.
“We arrived at five in the morning,” said Marta Ramirez, a housewife who came by bus from the central city of Leon to join the celebrations in Mexico City’s main square.
A woman president “understands the people better,” she said.
“She’s a very brave woman,” said Estela Lopez Hernandez, who made the 12-hour journey from Puerto Escondido in southern Mexico.
One high-profile absence at the ceremony was Spanish King Felipe VI, whom Sheinbaum refused to invite, accusing him of failing to acknowledge the harm caused by colonization.
In response, Spain announced it would boycott the inauguration, despite its strong economic and historic links with Mexico.
