NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico — A slain candidate who had been tipped to become a state governor in Mexico will be replaced by his brother, his political party announced on Wednesday, four days before the vote.
Monday's killing of Rodolfo Torre marked a peak in election-related violence ahead of local polls in 14 states, including 12 for governors.
Egidio Torre will replace his brother as gubernatorial candidate in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, said Ricardo Gamundi, the state head of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).
Rodolfo Torre was killed with five others in an ambush on their campaign vehicles on Monday in northeastern Tamaulipas state, where drug violence has flared in recent months.
President Felipe Calderon on Tuesday called for political parties to unite against organized crime.
Critics blame Calderon's military clampdown on the country's powerful drug gangs, involving some 50,000 troops, for increasing violence nationwide.
Almost 23,000 people have died in drug-related attacks in the past three and a half years, according to official figures.
Next Sunday's elections are seen by many as a test for the PRI, which governed Mexico for more than 70 years to 2000, ahead of 2012 presidential polls.
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