The ruling party’s candidate Claudia Sheinbaum today became the first woman to win the Mexican presidency by winning between 58.3 and 60.7 per cent of the vote in Sunday’s election, according to official figures.

Her closest challenger, opposition challenger Xóchitl Gálvez, from the alliance of the Institutional Revolutionary, National Action and Democratic Revolution parties, only achieved an estimated 26.6 to 28.6 per cent, according to INE’s quick count.

Announcing the results on national television, the president of the National Electoral Institute (INE), Guadalupe Taddei, said that Jorge Álvarez of Movimiento Ciudadano came in third place with figures of between 9.9 and 10.8 per cent.

The percentage of voter turnout on Election Day is estimated at between 60 and 61.5 percent of the nominal list, she said, adding that the quick count was based on a representative statistical sample of polling stations throughout the country and was carried out by a technical advisory committee made up of scientists and experts.

Around 98 million citizens were eligible to vote this Sunday for more than 20,000 posts, including, in addition to the presidency, nine governorships, 128 senatorial seats and 500 federal deputies.

Other posts at stake on election day included 1,98 local deputies, 1,802 municipal presidencies, 1,975 municipal councils, 14,560 council seats, 204 councillorships, 22 municipal council presidencies and 88 regidurias.