SANTIAGO, Chile — No one relished the milestone more than President Michelle Bachelet of Chile.
For a few years, she and two other female leaders presided over much of South America, representing more than half of the continent’s population.
Their presidencies — in Argentina, Brazil and Chile — made the region an exemplar of the global push for a more equitable footing for women in politics. And their moment came long before the United States, often regarded as less sexist than Latin America, even came close to electing a female president.
But now, with one of her counterparts impeached and the other fighting corruption charges, Ms. Bachelet finds herself in an unsettling position: the last female head of government standing in the Americas.
And in a few months, she will be gone, too.
After Ms. Bachelet’s term ends next year, none of the countries in North or South America are expected to have female presidents, a notable turnaround in a part of the world where, until recently, women have been elected to lead influential democracies.
Click here to read the full article published the New York Times on 24 July 2017.
SANTIAGO, Chile — No one relished the milestone more than President Michelle Bachelet of Chile.
For a few years, she and two other female leaders presided over much of South America, representing more than half of the continent’s population.
Their presidencies — in Argentina, Brazil and Chile — made the region an exemplar of the global push for a more equitable footing for women in politics. And their moment came long before the United States, often regarded as less sexist than Latin America, even came close to electing a female president.
But now, with one of her counterparts impeached and the other fighting corruption charges, Ms. Bachelet finds herself in an unsettling position: the last female head of government standing in the Americas.
And in a few months, she will be gone, too.
After Ms. Bachelet’s term ends next year, none of the countries in North or South America are expected to have female presidents, a notable turnaround in a part of the world where, until recently, women have been elected to lead influential democracies.
Click here to read the full article published the New York Times on 24 July 2017.