PT politician was shot dead while handing out gifts at an event

The criminal violence that plagues Mexico claimed a new victim next weekend. David Castillejos Cruz, councilor of Education of the Santiago Niltepec, Oaxaca City Council, was shot dead last Saturday, May 10. The incident occurred while the councilor was participating in a gift-giving event for Mother's Day.

The official was in the community of Santo Domingo de Guzmánaccompanied by his young daughter when armed individuals attacked him directly.

According to preliminary reports, he received at least five gunshot wounds. Although he was assisted by family members and rushed, he died on the way to the hospital.

So far, there are no arrests for this crime. The State Attorney General's Office (FGE) is investigating the incident, but as in so many other cases of political violence, institutional silence and impunity prevail.

A six-year term stained with blood

The death of councilor Castillejos Cruz is not an isolated incident. It adds to the escalation of violence that has marked the Morena governments, where organized crime took advantage of the failed "hugs not bullets" strategy to strengthen its territorial control.

At the beginning of the current six-year term, Mexico has witnessed a wave of murders against candidates, officials, and public representatives. In the same weekend, mayoral candidate Yesenia Lara in Veracruz was also murdered.

Morena, instead of ensuring security and Rule of Law, has downplayed this violence, reducing it to "isolated incidents." The containment strategy has failed and power vacuums have been filled by criminal groups that impose their law with blood and fire.

Oaxaca under fire

The state governed by Salomón Jara, also from Morena, faces an increasingly alarming security crisis. In just the first three months of 2024, Oaxaca recorded 504 homicides, of which 175 were intentional.

The murder of Castillejos Cruz occurred on the same day that three other intentional homicides were reported in Oaxaca and similar crimes in at least five more states.

The figures reflect a normalization of terror, while federal authorities continue to respond neither firmly nor effectively.

With each murdered politician, the Mexican democratic process weakens. Violence not only takes lives, it also erodes public trust, strengthens organized crime, and consolidates a country increasingly held hostage by fear.