MEXICO CITY  -  Claudia Sheinbaum will be sworn in on Tuesday as Mex­ico’s first woman president, taking charge of the violence-plagued Latin American na­tion at a time of mounting security, economic and diplo­matic challenges. The 62-year-old former Mexico City mayor and ruling party heavyweight will face immediate tests from cartel violence, frictions with key international allies and a backlash against controversial judicial reforms.

A scientist by training, Sheinbaum won a landslide election victory in June with a pledge to continue the left-wing reform agenda of outgoing leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a close ally. Sheinbaum’s re­lations with the United States, Mexico’s main trad­ing partner and a key ally in areas including security and migration, will depend to a large extent on who wins the US election on November 5.

Sheinbaum could probably develop “a quite good relationship with Kamala Harris because they’re very much alike,” said Pamela Starr, a professor of political science and international relations at the University of Southern California. “They’re both women who will be the first female president of their countries. So they’re both interested in ad­vancing women’s issues and women’s rights.

They’re both very much on the same page when it comes to climate change. And they’re both very much progressives,” she said.