Mexican mayor killed hours after first woman elected president
Gunmen have killed the female mayor of a Mexican town just hours after the country celebrated Claudia Sheinbaum’s election as its first woman president.
Yolanda Sánchez, who had governed the town of Cotija since September 2021, was fatally shot in the town’s center on Monday.
Sánchez, the first woman elected to the position, was ambushed and shot 19 times, dying shortly after in the hospital. Her bodyguard also died in the attack.
No arrests have been made, but it is widely believed that an organized crime group was responsible. Sánchez had reported receiving death threats since taking office and had been kidnapped in 2023 by armed men who subjected her to psychological terror before releasing her.
Local media suggest the Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG), known for drug trafficking, kidnapping, and extortion, and for targeting public officials, might be behind the attack. The men who had previously threatened Sánchez demanded she hand over the town’s security to state police officers controlled by organized crime groups.
She refused and asked for the military to reinforce the town. The mayor was also provided with armed bodyguards after the incident.
Her murder on Monday came less than a day after a general election that was overshadowed by the murder of local candidates.
More than 20 people running for office have been killed since September according to official figures, but independent surveys have put the number closer to 40.
The presidential race was won by Claudia Sheinbaum, who will be sworn in on 1 October as the first woman to hold the top office in Mexico.
Ms Sheinbaum’s defeated rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, has been critical of the violence which marred the campaign.
Ms Gálvez said that when she called Ms Sheinbaum on Monday, she told her that “I saw a Mexico with a lot of pain and violence. I wished that she could solve the severe problems our people have”.
While Ms Gálvez conceded defeat after Ms Sheinbaum’s unassailable lead in the polls was announced, she has since described the campaign for the presidency as an “unequal competition against the entire state apparatus dedicated to favouring its candidate”.
She also said that she would challenge Ms Sheinbaum’s win without specifying how she would do that.
With more than 95% of the votes tallied in the preliminary count, Ms Sheinbaum had a lead of over 31 percentage points over Ms Gálvez.
Gunmen have killed the female mayor of a Mexican town just hours after the country celebrated Claudia Sheinbaum’s election as its first woman president.
Yolanda Sánchez, who had governed the town of Cotija since September 2021, was fatally shot in the town’s center on Monday.
Sánchez, the first woman elected to the position, was ambushed and shot 19 times, dying shortly after in the hospital. Her bodyguard also died in the attack.
No arrests have been made, but it is widely believed that an organized crime group was responsible. Sánchez had reported receiving death threats since taking office and had been kidnapped in 2023 by armed men who subjected her to psychological terror before releasing her.
Local media suggest the Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG), known for drug trafficking, kidnapping, and extortion, and for targeting public officials, might be behind the attack. The men who had previously threatened Sánchez demanded she hand over the town’s security to state police officers controlled by organized crime groups.
She refused and asked for the military to reinforce the town. The mayor was also provided with armed bodyguards after the incident.
Her murder on Monday came less than a day after a general election that was overshadowed by the murder of local candidates.
More than 20 people running for office have been killed since September according to official figures, but independent surveys have put the number closer to 40.
The presidential race was won by Claudia Sheinbaum, who will be sworn in on 1 October as the first woman to hold the top office in Mexico.
Ms Sheinbaum’s defeated rival, Xóchitl Gálvez, has been critical of the violence which marred the campaign.
Ms Gálvez said that when she called Ms Sheinbaum on Monday, she told her that “I saw a Mexico with a lot of pain and violence. I wished that she could solve the severe problems our people have”.
While Ms Gálvez conceded defeat after Ms Sheinbaum’s unassailable lead in the polls was announced, she has since described the campaign for the presidency as an “unequal competition against the entire state apparatus dedicated to favouring its candidate”.
She also said that she would challenge Ms Sheinbaum’s win without specifying how she would do that.
With more than 95% of the votes tallied in the preliminary count, Ms Sheinbaum had a lead of over 31 percentage points over Ms Gálvez.
