Mayoral candidate and five other people killed in gunfire at a campaign rally in southern Mexico

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A mayoral candidate and five other people were killed when people opened fire at a campaign rally in the violence-wracked southern Mexico state of Chiapas, officials said.

State prosecutors said a young girl was among the six people killed in the gunfire late Thursday, along with mayoral candidate Lucero López Maza. Two people also were wounded.

“A confrontation broke out between armed civilians during a political campaign event,” prosecutors said in a statement.

It was unclear whether López Maza was the intended target of the attack, because shootings have become so common and widespread in the area.

The mass shooting occurred at a crossroads in the rural town of La Concordia, Chiapas, about 80 miles (125 kms) from the border with Guatemala

The area near the Guatemalan border is a major smuggling route for drugs and migrants, and Mexico’s two main drug cartels have been fighting for control of the region.

On Tuesday, 11 people were killed in mass shootings in a village in the township of Chicomuselo, Chiapas, a few dozen miles (kilometers) away from La Concordia.

Mexico’s July 2 elections have also been marred by violence, with about 20 candidates killed so far in 2024.

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