Puebla deputy proposes law to curb municipal nepotism

Julio Huerta Gómez, a local deputy for the Morena party, is preparing a legislative initiative to combat nepotism within the 217 municipal governments of Puebla. The proposal seeks to amend the State Constitution and the Code of Electoral Institutions and Procedures to prevent direct relatives—such as parents, children, or spouses—from serving together in the same candidate formula as principal and substitute for municipal presidencies, councilors, or syndics.

Huerta stated that the measure aims to prevent public power from being treated as family patrimony. While relatives would still be allowed to participate in politics, they would be prohibited from sharing the same specific candidate-substitute pairing. The initiative follows reported instances of nepotism in municipalities including Tianguismanalco and Acatlán de Osorio.

Critics of the current political landscape argue that such legislative changes may be unnecessary if party leaders acted with integrity, alleging that the sale of candidacies and the imposition of family members as substitutes are driven by corruption and the use of illicit funds to secure political control.