Mexico Elections 22024: Two dead due to shootings at voting points

At least two people died this Sunday due to shootings at voting centers in Puebla, a state in the center of Mexicowhich temporarily suspended the voting at polling stationss of the municipalities of Tlapanalá and Coyomeapan.

In Tlapanalá, a woman died due to a confrontation between a group of armed men who were allegedly seeking to steal the ballots and security elements, while in Coyomeapan a man died from a gunshot outside the voting center at a secondary school.

The Employers’ Confederation of the Mexican Republic (Coparmex) of Puebla reported these deaths when presenting a report on its support of the elections.

“We deeply regret the death of two people, one of them in Santa María Coyomeapan and Tlapanalá, as a result of the electoral violence in these communities,” said Rubén Furlong, president of Coparmex Puebla, in a press conference.

The president of the State Electoral Institute (IEE) of Puebla, Blanca Cruz García, acknowledged the acts of violence, without referring to the victims, but argued that the voting closures were temporary.

“(If) there is a situation that alters the order of the polling station (the polling station), of the voting, the voting is temporarily suspended. “That is perfectly regulated, perfectly regulated,” the official declared to the media.

The closures occur in the midst of electoral violence, with 22 murdered candidates recognized by the Government, although independent groups record more, such as the 34 reported by the consulting firm Integralia, which documents nearly 250 political homicides when including advisors, officials and family, Therefore, this Sunday’s elections are considered the most violent in the democratic history of Mexico.

The National Electoral Institute (INE) recognized on Saturday that it would not open 222 voting centers in the country due to insecurity or conflicts, with the majority of them in Chiapas, which suspended the elections in the municipalities of Chicomuselo and Pantelhó due to violent events such as burning of tickets.

Concern about security is growing because these are the largest elections in the history of Mexico, where more than 98 million people are called to renew more than 20,000 positions, such as the presidency, the 500 deputies, the 128 senators and nine state governments.