Mexico Elections: Masked Men Stop Frontrunner Claudia Sheinbaum To Ask for Her Help

The Mexico elections have been dominated by news of candidates being killed left and right, though this has not affected the presidential race that much with frontrunner Claudia Sheinbaum continuing her presidential campaign like normal but this was stopped when masked men approached her and asked for her help to stem the rising violence in the country.

The former Mexico City mayor was traveling between campaign stops when the vehicle she was traveling in was stopped by several masked men on Sunday. They did not harm her or her staff, but they did ask the leading presidential candidate how she would address the violence in the southern state of Chiapas.

The Morena Party candidate remained in the front passenger seat and listened to the masked men calmly with her window down, according to the Associated Press. The masked men reportedly filmed the interaction on their phone cameras and she was seen shaking the hand of one of them.

Sheinbaum is the handpicked successor to current President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and she is currently leading in the polls, with conservative opposition candidate Xochitl Galvez trailing behind her. The masked men let her move on soon after the interaction.

The masked men reportedly identified themselves as local residents who claimed that they felt "powerless" in the midst of drug-related violence. They blamed the government for not doing enough to provide security for people like them and they asked Sheinbaum to take action should she be elected president.

The township they were talking about is Motozintla, which is located near the Mexico-Guatemala border, with the masked men asking her not to let it become a "disaster" like other communities in the region.

Mexico Elections Presidential Frontrunner Claudia Sheinbaum Pledges Energy Investments

Sheinbaum is the clear favorite to win as Galves is trailing far behind her in various polls. One of the reasons she is popular is her energy policy as she recently outlined a plan to invest $13.57 billion in new energy generation projects.

READ MORE: Mexico Elections: Yet Another Mayoral Candidate Killed, 16th Candidate Death as June 16 Vote Approaches

Reuters described this as an ambitious plan on the part of the former Mexico City mayor, whose energy plan includes increasing wind and solar power generation. She also plans to modernize five hydroelectric plants with that promised $13.57 billion investment.

This focus on renewable energy is a massive shift from her mentor, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador who prioritized strengthening state oil company Pemex over renewables.

Claudia Sheinbaum May Become 1^st Mexico President With Jewish Background

Despite Mexico being a heavily Catholic country, Sheinbaum is not one of them and because she is the likeliest to win according to the polls, she may very well be Mexico's first leader with a Jewish background after the elections on June 2.

Sheinbaum has always identified herself as not religiously observant and often approached her Jewish background with caution, per the Associated Press. Her campaign team has often stated that she considers herself a woman of faith, but she is not religiously affiliated.

All four of her grandparents were Jews who immigrated from Lithuania and Bulgaria. However, she was born and raised in Mexico City and her parents did not raise her under any religion. It should be noted that there is a sizeable Jewish community in Mexico, though not as large as in Argentina or the US.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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