A Mexican mayoral candidate who survived an armed attack, during which his campaign manager was killed, has been given police protection.
Albino Gómez disappeared after the attack in southern Guerrero state on Sunday, leading his party to believe he had been kidnapped.
He was later found alive, with colleagues clarifying that he had managed to escape and had been in hiding.
The campaign for Sunday’s election in Mexico has been marked by violence, with Guerrero being the most dangerous state for candidates. Mr. Gómez is running for mayor with the governing Morena party in the municipality of Cochoapa el Grande.
He was targeted shortly after attending his closing campaign rally when at least one gunman stormed the house he was in and opened fire.
Mr. Gómez’s campaign manager, Felipe Chávez, was killed, and two other people were reportedly injured in the attack.
The mayor of the nearby town of Chilpancingo raised the alarm, urging authorities to “take the necessary action to safeguard the life of our colleague and those of his team.”
On Monday, the mayor explained that preliminary information led her to believe that Mr. Gómez had been seized by the gunman. She expressed relief upon learning that Mr. Gómez was well and under police protection.
Police and officials from the attorney general’s office are investigating the case. They have not yet released any information about who may have been behind the attack or the motive.
The run-up to the election, which will choose a new president, members of the legislature, nine governors, and almost 20,000 local officials, has been the most violent in recent history. Dozens of candidates have been killed, and hundreds have been threatened.
Candidates running for local office have been the most affected. Mexico’s powerful criminal groups target them to ensure their favored candidate wins or to intimidate rival candidates into compliance.
Corrupting or threatening local officials can yield huge rewards for criminal groups. Municipal authorities can be coerced into ignoring criminal activity or forced to channel lucrative building contracts to the gangs.