Mexican mayor murdered on first day reveals depths of organized crime problems

The United States and Mexican border has been a hot topic politically on both sides of it. That’s where the similarities seem to stop. While a mayor in a United States city might worry about public relations or policy changes on their first day of office, their counterparts in Mexico have to worry about their lives.

Gisela Mota, 33, had barely completed her first day after taking office as mayor of Temixco when gunmen entered her home and gunned her down.

https://twitter.com/ChopAttack/status/683449386874068996

The state of politics in Mexico is extremely precarious. The drug cartels rule much of the land. To make matters worse, the authorities in many regions of Mexico are as corrupt as the cartels and often work with them to promote drug trafficking into the United States where their products can go for a premium. This makes it difficult to find valid candidates who aren’t owned by the cartels; if they win on a promise to stop the cartels, they risk their lives.

In America, we might believe that the world of politics is a mess, but at least the chances of assassinations are greatly reduced compared to our neighbors to the south.