Another local political candidate has been killed in Mexico just days before the country holds a historic presidential election amidst a significant rise in political violence.
As all political candidates concluded their campaigns on Wednesday for the legally mandated “reflection period” for voters, mayoral candidate José Alfredo Cabrera Barrientos was shot dead during his campaign’s closing rally in Coyuca de Benítez, Guerrero state.
The suspect in Cabrera Barrientos’ murder was “killed at the scene,” according to a statement from Guerrero’s attorney general’s office, which is investigating the incident.
Cabrera Barrientos was a member of the Broad Front for Mexico opposition coalition, which includes the conservative National Action Party (PAN), the progressive Democratic Revolution Party, and the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).
His death is the latest in a series of violent attacks on political figures since Mexico’s official electoral process began in September. An analysis by Integralia, a public affairs consulting firm, reported at least 749 incidents of political violence, including 231 killings—34 of which were political candidates. The analysis also documented armed attacks, assaults, kidnappings, disappearances, and threats against candidates and public officials, as well as their families.
These incidents represent a 150% increase in political violence compared to the last election season, which concluded in 2021.
As Mexico prepares for its largest election in history, violence is a critical concern. On Sunday, voters will elect all 628 congressional seats and tens of thousands of local positions.
Front-running presidential candidates Claudia Sheinbaum and Xóchitl Gálvez, both vying to become Mexico’s first female president, closed their campaigns on Wednesday. Sheinbaum, from the governing Morena party, promised to continue President López Obrador’s strategy of offering apprenticeships to reduce youth involvement in drug cartels, emphasizing a “strategy of peace and security.”
Gálvez, representing the Broad Front for Mexico opposition coalition, criticized López Obrador’s “hugs not bullets” policy and pledged to confront the cartels and unite the polarized nation, asserting, “We are all Mexicans.”