Mexico Elections: 2 Mayoral Candidates of the Same City Shot Dead, Within Hours Apart

By Rick Martin First Posted: Feb 27, 2024 08:45 PM EST

Mexico tends to become more violent as elections approach, and this was shown when two mayoral candidates from the same city were shot dead within hours of one another.

The incident happened in the city of Maravatio, which is found in Michoacan, considered one of the most violent states in Mexico. One of the victims belonged to Mexico's ruling party, Morena, and an ally of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO), while the other was a member of the opposition National Action Party (PAN).

The slain Morena mayoral candidate was identified as Miguel Angel Reyes Zavala. He was shot dead in his vehicle outside the clinic where he worked. Meanwhile, the PAN candidate was identified as Armando Perez Luna, who was found dead in a car with gunshot wounds.

The campaign period in Mexico has not even started yet, and this incident regarding two mayoral candidates from two prominent parties has highlighted the violence that is usually expected during the Mexico election period. According to France 24, these attacks are expected to increase as the elections draw closer.

Over 30 people have now been killed in election-related violence in Mexico. This includes 16 aspiring candidates, with the majority of these attacks being blamed on fighting between criminals.

Local Residents Shocked Over Killings of 2 Mexico Mayoral Candidates

Zavala was a local gynecologist before being shot and killed in cold blood. Maravatio resident and homemaker Carmen Luna, one of his former patients, spoke with the Associated Press and said that his killing was shocking and incomprehensible, adding, "The way I see it, there's no explanation for killing a person ... it might have been a power struggle between them."

"He took care of me and was very good. He was very friendly," she added.

Meanwhile, PAN leader Marko Cortes reacted to the killing of one of their mayoral candidates on social media, adding, "This illustrates the extremely serious level of violence and lack of safety that prevails ahead of the most important elections in Mexican history."

AMLO's Morena Party also reacted, saying that the killing of Zavala was "a cowardly and reprehensible act." Zavala was not the first mayoral candidate to be killed, as another Morena mayoral hopeful was killed last year.

Three Mexico Forest Rangers Believed To Be Killed By Illegal Loggers

Over in Central Mexico, more news of violence emerged as three forest rangers patrolling near the slopes of the Iztaccihuatl volcano were shot and killed by suspected illegal loggers. A fourth forest ranger was wounded.

The attack happened in Puebla State, near Mexico City. Police stated that the rangers were just "carrying out the duties of forest rangers" when they were suddenly attacked. They were not official forest rangers employed by the government but were instead volunteers who were actually farmers from local communal farms who took to patrolling the area to protect their communities, including against illegal loggers.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Mexico elections preceded by spike in political killings - CNN