Miguel Ángel Zavala, a Morena candidate for the mayoralty of Maravatío in Michoacán, was killed in the city on Monday as confirmed by official sources. The physician, a gynecologist by training, had just left the San Ángel clinic in the Rancho La Huerta subdivision when an attacker opened fire on his vehicle. Municipal police arrived soon after and secured the scene, but details remain scarce as the investigation unfolds. [1]
Earlier, on October 19, 2023, Dagoberto García Reyes, another Morena candidate seeking the Maravatío mayor’s office, was fatally shot in the same municipality. Maravatío lies about 100 kilometers from Morelia, the state capital. The violence in the region has been linked to the presence of criminal groups such as CJNG, La Familia Michoacana, and Los Caballeros Templarios, which vie for control over various illicit activities in eastern Michoacán. [2]
In January, civil society organization Data Cívica reported that at least five electoral candidates or aspirants were killed during the month. When including public officials and family members of politicians, the political-electoral violence tally rises to twenty, according to the report Votar entre balas. The month thus added to a broader pattern of targeting that has affected the electoral landscape. [3]
The statistics tracked by Data Cívica show that January’s fatalities add to eleven other murders of candidates, precandidates, and former candidates documented since the second half of 2023, marking the ongoing electoral cycle that culminates in early June. From 2018 through 2023, the organization documented a total of a hundred and five such attacks, illustrating a sustained risk surrounding political competition in the area. [4]
Mexico is set to hold its most expansive electoral vote on June 2, a day when more than 97 million citizens are eligible to participate in the nation’s general elections. The ballots include the presidency, all 500 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, 128 seats in the Senate, and nine state governments, reflecting the scale of the democratic process currently underway. [5]