Claudia Sheinbaum, who won Mexico's presidential vote in June, is finally declared president-elect

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Claudia Sheinbaum, the woman who won Mexico’s June 2 presidential vote, has finally been formally declared Mexico’s President-elect, the first woman to hold the office in Mexico.

At a ceremony Thursday, the former Mexico City mayor was handed the legal ruling declaring her the country’s next president. The ruling had been delayed by appeals before the federal electoral tribunal.

Sheinbaum will be sworn in as president on Oct. 1, instead of the usual Dec. 1 swearing-in ceremony. The transition period was shortened after Mexican legislators judged that outgoing presidents stayed too long in office. Sheinbaum will serve a six-year term through 2030.

Sheinbaum has pledged to follow all the policies of her predecessor and political mentor, outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

She wasted no time in saying that López Obrador's “hugs, not bullets” policy of not confronting the country's powerful drug cartels was here to stay. The policy, which stresses hand-out programs to reduce the pool of cartel recruits, has proved ineffective at stemming the wave of drug violence.

“The war against drugs will not return," Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum won with almost 60% of the vote, about double the number of her nearest competitor, Xóchitl Gálvez.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Mexican President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, accompanied by husband Jesus Maria Tarriba, waves as she leaves a ceremony certifying her as the winner of the presidential election, at the Federal Electoral Tribunal in Mexico City, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Mexico City Mayor-elect Clara Brugada waves as she arrives to a ceremony to certify Mexican President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum as the winner of the presidential election, at the Federal Electoral Tribunal in Mexico City, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Mexican President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum poses for a photo after her certification as the winner of the presidential election during a ceremony at the Federal Electoral Tribunal in Mexico City, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Mexican President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, accompanied by husband Jesus Maria Tarriba, waves as she arrives to a ceremony to certify her as the winner of the presidential election at the Federal Electoral Tribunal, in Mexico City, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Mexican President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, accompanied by husband Jesus Maria Tarriba, holds the official document certifying her as the winner of the presidential election as she leaves the Federal Electoral Tribunal, in Mexico City, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

MAGDEBURG, Germany (AP) — Germany on Saturday was still in shock and struggling to understand the suspect behind the attack in the city of Magdeburg.

Identified by local media as 50-year-old Taleb A., a psychiatry and psychotherapy specialist, authorities said he has been living in Germany for two decades. He was arrested on site after plowing a black BMW into a Christmas market crowded with holiday shoppers Friday evening, killing at least five people and wounding about 200 others.

Prominent German terrorism expert Peter Neumann posted on X that he had yet to come across a suspect in an act of mass violence with that profile.

Taleb’s X account is filled with tweets and retweets focusing on anti-Islam themes and criticism of the religion while sharing congratulatory notes to Muslims who left the faith. He also described himself as a former Muslim.

He was critical of German authorities, saying they had failed to do enough to combat the “Islamism of Europe.”

He has also voiced support for the far-right and anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

Some described Taleb as an activist who helped Saudi women flee their homeland. Recently, he seemed focused on his theory that German authorities have been targeting Saudi asylum seekers.

Neumann, the terrorism expert, wrote: “After 25 years in this ‘business’ you think nothing could surprise you anymore. But a 50-year-old Saudi ex-Muslim who lives in East Germany, loves the AfD and wants to punish Germany for its tolerance towards Islamists — that really wasn’t on my radar."

On Saturday, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser told reporters: “At this point, we can only say for sure that the perpetrator was evidently Islamophobic – we can confirm that. Everything else is a matter for further investigation and we have to wait.”

A German-based organization called Athiest Refugee Relief said the alleged attacker was not a part of the group and claimed that he made “numerous accusations and claims” against it and former board members, which it said were false.

“We distance ourselves from him in the strongest terms," the group said in a statement on its website, adding that members of Atheist Refugee Relief filed a criminal complaint against him in 2019 following “the most foul slander and verbal attacks."

An image taken from a video shows police officers arresting a suspect after car drove into a crowd at the Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, Friday Dec. 20, 2024. (TNN/DPA via AP)

A person stands by flowers and candles placed outside St. John's Church near a Christmas Market, where a car drove into a crowd on Friday evening, in Magdeburg, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)