At least 20 candidates for public office have been assassinated in Mexico so far in 2024 and the last months of 2023, making this electoral process one of the most violent in the country’s recent history.
The most recent case of a candidate being murdered occurred in Celaya, Guanajuato, where Bertha Gisela Gaytán Gutiérrez, the Morena candidate for the mayoralty, fell victim to an attack that cost her life.
Gisela Gaytán Gutiérrez was assassinated on the second day of the campaign in Guanajuato while touring the streets of Celaya.
Below are some of the most notorious cases of candidate assassinations recorded so far in the context of the 2024 elections:
How many candidates have been assassinated in Mexico by month?
December 2023: The violence began with the assassinations of Jaime Dámaso Solís, aspiring mayor of Zitlala, Guerrero; Miguel Ángel Cruz Robles, candidate for the municipal presidency of Villa del Carbón, State of Mexico, by Morena; Wilman Monje Morales, former mayor and aspiring local deputy for MC in Gutiérrez Zamora, Veracruz; Alejandro Lanuza Hernández, PAN councilor in Salvatierra, Guanajuato, and aspirant to the municipal presidency; Javier Torres Barrera, former PAN candidate for the mayoralty of Chiautla de Tapia, Puebla, who also sought the municipal presidency; Dagoberto García, Morena aspirant in Maravatío Rivera; and Ricardo Taja Ramírez, Morena’s pre-candidate for the mayoralty of Acapulco, Guerrero, murdered in a pozoleria.
ALSO READ: Who was Gisela Gaytán, the candidate for the mayorship of Celaya who was murdered?
January 2024: The violence continued with the assassination of Giovanni Lezama Barrera, PAN’s general secretary in Morelos and councilor in Cuautla, profiled for a federal deputy position; David Rey González Moreno, aspiring to the municipal presidency of Suchiate, Chiapas, by the Broad Front for Mexico; Sergio Hueso, Movimiento Ciudadano candidate for the mayoralty of Armería, Colima; Miriam Nohemí Ríos Ríos, Movimiento Ciudadano leader in Jacona, Michoacán; Marcelino Ruíz Esteban, former PRD mayor of Atlixtac, Guerrero; and José Alejandro Naredo García, PRD leader in Cuitláhuac, Veracruz.
February 2024: Jaime Vera, Morena and PVEM’s pre-candidate for the mayoralty of Mascota, Jalisco; Juan Pérez Guardado, Secretary of Social Development in Fresnillo, Zacatecas; Yair Martín Romero Segura, pre-candidate for a federal deputy position by Morena in Ecatepec; Miguel Ángel Zavala Reyes and Armando Pérez Luna, both pre-candidates for the mayoralty of Maravatío, Michoacán, by Morena and PAN respectively, were assassinated.
March 2024: Alfredo González Díaz, PT’s aspirant for the mayoralty of Atoyac, Guerrero; Tomás Morales Patrón, from Morena in Chilapa, Guerrero; Diego Pérez Méndez, PRI’s pre-candidate for the mayoralty of San Juan Cancuc, Chiapas; and Jaime González Pérez, Morena’s pre-candidate for the mayoralty of Acatzingo, Puebla, joined the list of assassinated politicians.
April: Gisela Gaytán and Adrián Guerrero Caracheo, Morena’s candidates for the mayoralty of Celaya, Guanajuato, was assassinated.
INE: 83 Candidates Have Requested Protection
In the context of the 2024 elections in Mexico, a year considered one of the largest and most violent in the country’s history, 83 aspirants to various public offices have requested protection measures due to the prevailing climate of insecurity.
Guadalupe Taddei, the president counselor of the National Electoral Institute (INE), reported that the Government of Mexico received these requests, already providing protection to 74 of these candidates, including four who aspire to a governorship.
The protection measures vary according to the level of risk assessed for each candidate, potentially including personal escorts to constant monitoring of their activities. The risk assessment determines the number of agents and vehicles assigned to each case, thus ensuring a safer environment for candidates in their campaigns.
This situation occurs in an unprecedented political violence context, with reports from the Data Cívica organization indicating the assassination of at least 10 candidates or aspirants in just the first two months of 2024. Additionally, according to Data Int consultancy data, 20 people aspiring to an elective office have been murdered so far in the electoral year, totaling 76 individuals potentially linked to the electoral process dead.
The need for protection is not limited to lower-profile candidates, as the three presidential hopefuls: Claudia Sheinbaum, Jorge Álvarez Máynez, and Xóchitl Gálvez, have also requested and received federal protection.
Amid this wave of violence, the INE’s president has announced an upcoming meeting with local electoral bodies to define attention strategies in the most affected areas. Meanwhile, electoral and security authorities work together to ensure the candidates’ safety and preserve the electoral process’s integrity.
List of Assassinated Candidates and Aspirants
- Jaime Dámaso Solís, aspiring mayor of Zitlala, Guerrero.
- Miguel Ángel Cruz Robles, sought the candidacy for the Municipal Presidency of Villa del Carbón, State of Mexico by Morena.
- Wilman Monje Morales, former mayor of Gutiérrez Zamora, Veracruz, and aspiring local deputy by MC.
- Alejandro Lanuza Hernández, PAN councilor in Salvatierra seeking to be a candidate for the Municipal Presidency.
- Javier Torres Barrera, former PAN candidate to the mayoralty of Chiautla de Tapia, Puebla, sought the municipal presidency.
- Dagoberto García, aspirant for the mayoralty of Maravatío Rivera by Morena.
- Ricardo Taja Ramírez, pre-candidate for the mayoralty of Acapulco, Guerrero by Morena. Murdered in a pozoleria in the Diamond area of Acapulco.
- Giovanni Lezama Barrera, PAN’s general secretary in Morelos, murdered inside a gym in Cuautla, Morelos.
- David Rey González Moreno, aspiring to the municipal presidency of Suchiate, Chiapas by the Broad Front for Mexico.
- Sergio Hueso, aspiring candidate of Movimiento Ciudadano (MC) for the mayoralty of Armería, Colima.
- Miriam Nohemí Ríos Ríos, leader of Movimiento Ciudadano (MC) in Jacona, Michoacán.
- Marcelino Ruíz Esteban, PRD’s former mayor of Atlixtac, Guerrero.
- José Alejandro Naredo García, leader of the PRD in Cuitláhuac, Veracruz.
- Jaime Vera, pre-candidate of Morena and PVEM for the mayoralty of Mascota, Jalisco.
- Juan Pérez Guardado, Secretary of Social Development of the municipality of Fresnillo, Zacatecas.
- Yair Martín Romero Segura, pre-candidate for a federal deputy position by Morena in Ecatepec.
- Miguel Ángel Zavala Reyes, pre-candidate of Morena for the mayoralty of Maravatío, Michoacán.
- Armando Pérez Luna, pre-candidate of PAN for the mayoralty of Maravatío, Michoacán.
- Alfredo González Díaz, aspirant of PT for the mayoralty of Atoyac, Guerrero.
- Tomás Morales Patrón, aspirant of Morena for the mayoralty of Chilapa, Guerrero.
- Diego Pérez Méndez, pre-candidate of PRI for the mayoralty of San Juan Cancuc, Chiapas.
- Jaime González Pérez, pre-candidate of Morena for the mayoralty of Acatzingo, Puebla.
- Gisela Gaytán, candidate of Morena for the mayoralty of Celaya, Guanajuato.
- Adrián Guerrero Caracheo, Morena’s candidate for first councilor in Celaya.
