CNN —
The mayor of a crime-ridden city in Mexico has been murdered less than a week after taking office, the latest in a series of violence targeting politicians in the country.
The killing of Alejandro Arcos, who took office as mayor of Chilpancingo on October 1, comes days after the shooting death of Francisco Tapia, the city’s secretary, and is the latest and most violent attack on public security in the country. My concerns have renewed. A historic general election.
Mexico’s newly elected President Claudia Sheinbaum said Monday that Arcos’ killing was “unfortunate” and that Mexico’s security cabinet was set to address the country’s security issues on Tuesday. He said he would explain the measures in “more detail”.
“We’re going to develop a general strategy. In some states, we’re going to work with governors to have more presence, more intelligence, more investigations,” Sheinbaum told the Daily Reporter. He said this at a press conference.
Chilpancingo is the capital of the state of Guerrero, which is notorious for violent crime and is also home to the tourist attraction of Acapulco.
Governor Evelyn Salgado condemned the killing and vowed to hold those responsible accountable. “The entire Guerrero community mourns his death and we are outraged,” Salgado wrote about X.
But the violence faced by Mexican politicians extends far beyond Mr. Guerrero, as demonstrated in the historic June 2 election that brought Sheinbaum to power.
With 20,000 electoral seats at stake, the scale of bloodshed by those seeking to influence the vote was unprecedented.
At least 34 political candidates were assassinated by criminal organizations during the election period. And the violence didn’t stop there. Just hours after Mr. Sheinbaum’s election, the female mayor of a town in western Mexico was shot and killed.
According to a report by Integraria Consultants, criminal organizations in Mexico carry out politically motivated attacks at the municipal level, as mayors can offer impunity due to their ties to law enforcement or the local economy. going to the center.
According to the report, criminal organizations often finance campaigns during elections and use threats or violent intervention to coerce politicians into cooperating with candidates.
