In a tragic escalation of political violence in Mexico, Jorge Huerta Cabrera, a candidate for the Green Party (PVEM) for a local office in the state of Puebla, was killed on Friday. This assassination marks the 37th political killing in the country’s election cycle, highlighting an alarming surge in violence against political figures. According to the report, Cabrera was fatally shot near his home after he exited his truck and later succumbed to his injuries at the General Hospital of Izúcar de Matamoros. His wife and another man were also injured in the attack.
This incident adds to the tense atmosphere leading up to Mexico’s general elections scheduled for June 2, 2024. Just days earlier, candidate Lenin Pérez survived an assassination attempt in Chiapas, and another mayoral candidate was killed at a campaign rally. A political violence report by Integralia indicated that most assassinated candidates were running for municipal positions.
In response to Cabrera’s murder, Jimmy Natale, the PVEM leader in Puebla, called for justice and identified Willebaldo Rayes Méndez, a candidate for an alternate councilor of the coalition PRIANPRD, as among those responsible. He demanded that the Attorney General hold the perpetrators accountable. The Governor of Puebla, Sergio Salomón Céspedes Peregrina, condemned the assassination and confirmed that the state’s Prosecutor’s Office is actively investigating the case.