SEATTLE — Thousands stood for hours in the rain outside Capitol Hill’s Consulate of Mexico Sunday to vote in person in Mexico’s historic presidential election.
Preliminary results indicate voters are likely to make history by electing Mexico’s first female president. Claudia Sheinbaum of the left-wing Morena party grabbed an early lead Sunday evening.
"Either way, its gonna be a woman," said Juan Belasco, a Vancouver B.C. man who traveled to Seattle to vote.
Those casting ballots in Seattle made history pf another kind. For the first time, Mexican citizens living abroad could cast in-person ballots Sunday for Mexico’s presidential election. The Mexican Consulate was one of just 20 consular offices in the US where Mexican citizens living abroad could vote in person.
About 675,000 Mexican citizens living in other countries are registered to vote, but historically, only a small percentage actually have. Several voters told KING 5 Sunday they are happy to be able to vote remotely.
"It is a big deal to be able to cast our votes so our cities will be safer," Belasco said.
Still, the process was not smooth for voters. He said many left because they were not able or willing to wait hours in line in the rain.
"It took forever," Belasco said. "Yeah, we were here for six hours."
A father and daughter duo said they waited in line for 10 hours in the rain. But for them, it’s worth it.
"Everybody just wants to have peace," said Judith Rosas-Gonzalez, a girl who stood in line with her father.
Her dad cast his ballot in hopes of electing a president who can end Mexico’s cartel violence.
"He lost three brothers and my mom because of that the violence, and they got like assassinated," Rosas-Gonzalez said. "So he thinks it's very important for a good president to take over.”
She and others said they hope the newly elected leader will bring some positive change to the country.
"It won’t just be like all men that it’s gonna be a woman it’s gonna be a change and everything," Rosas-Gonzalez said. “I get men do the work and stuff like that but sometimes us women like to also do the work and not just stay at home and stuff like that."
We asked her, "Do you feel like you’d wanna be the president someday?"
"Yeah," she said. "I don’t see why not!”
The frontrunner in this election is Sheinbaum, the chosen candidate for the political party Morena. One of her campaign promises was to drive down Mexico’s high national homicide rate.