Valentín Lavín Romero, the mayor of Temoac in the Mexican state of Morelos, was shot dead on Wednesday inside the town hall, months after surviving a previous assassination attempt. He is the 14th mayor to be murdered since Claudia Sheinbaum became president in October 2024.
Details of the attack
The hitmen entered the town hall in Temoac, near Mexico City, in the middle of the day, shot Lavín Romero dead, and escaped on a motorbike. Authorities have not yet identified a motive or suspects, but the Morelos prosecutor's office vowed to “exhaust all lines of investigation”.
Lavín Romero, a member of the Green party, an ally of the ruling leftwing Morena party, had been wounded in late January when hitmen shot him at a petrol station on a motorway.
Broader context of violence against mayors
Almost 100 mayors have been murdered in Mexico since 2006, when then-president Felipe Calderón deployed the military to combat organized crime groups, leading to a surge in drug-related violence. The municipal level of government is the least protected layer of the state, where criminal groups seek deals with authorities to strengthen their control over local territory and businesses.
Local media reported that Lavín Romero allegedly had ties to local crime groups. His mother-in-law, a former treasurer for the municipal government, was arrested in September 2025 for alleged ties to the criminal group Los Aparicio and involvement in kidnappings.
Allegations and investigations
In March, the activist group People's Front in Defence of Land and Water demanded authorities investigate Lavín Romero for his alleged involvement in the murders of two activists, Samir Flores and Sandra Rosa Camacho Flores. In May, three months after the first attempt on his life, a banner was left in central Temoac, seemingly by a criminal group, accusing Lavín Romero of protecting its rivals and demanding he comply with their interests.
His assassination comes as Mexico's federal government takes steps to dismantle corruption networks between municipal authorities and criminal groups through Operation Swarm, under which 85 officials have been arrested across three states, including Morelos.
According to official data, the homicide rate in Mexico has fallen by roughly half over the past year, although security analysts say the true reduction is likely smaller. More than 130,000 people are registered as missing in the country.
