Mexico’s National Guard Shot at Political Candidates, Says Opposition Party

A member of Mexican National Guard watches the border with the US at the Anapra area in Ci
HERIKA MARTINEZ/AFP/Getty Images
Ildefonso Ortiz and Brandon Darby

A convoy of Mexican National Guard soldiers shot at two female political candidates in the state of Jalisco, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) claimed.

The incident occurred this week in the mountain area of Jalisco in Villa Purificacion — a small town northwest of the popular beach region of Manzanillo. While Mexico’s federal government has not released any information on the case, the PRI claimed that two candidates for city commission were riding in a vehicle with three other individuals when the military vehicles pulled up behind them and began shooting. Officials claimed the women got nervous and did not pull over.

The gunshots from the National Guardsman injured the driver of the vehicle, who had to be rushed to a local hospital in serious condition. The other individuals in the car were unharmed. They also were not arrested or detained, the PRI revealed.

In the aftermath, the PRI is asking for an investigation from the federal and state governments. The party is also asking for protection for their political candidates.

As Breitbart Texas reported, the current electoral season in Mexico has been filled with bloodshed as dozens of candidates or political workers have been shot at or killed so far. This summer, Mexico is expected to hold a heavily contested presidential election and numerous other local and state elections. The electoral contest is largely divided into two fields, with the party founded by Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador leading a few smaller parties on one side versus an alliance of the three main older parties, including PRI, PAN (National Action Party), and PRD (Revolutionary Democratic Party). While the three main opposition parties differ in political ideology, they teamed up in an effort to defeat the Morena Party.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.     

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