Puebla governor Martha Erika Alonso dies days after taking office, along with former governor Rafael Moreno

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A Mexican governor and her husband, a former governor of the same state, were killed in a helicopter crash in the center of the country on Monday, local media and politicians said.

Martha Erika Alonso, the new governor of the central state of Puebla, and her husband, Senator Rafael Moreno, died when their helicopter came down not far from the state capital, according to the newspaper Reforma.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Rafael Moreno and Martha Erika Alonso, the new governor of Puebla, who have died in a helicopter crash. Photograph: Joel Merino/Martha Erika Alonso/AP/Reuters

It was unclear if the pilot died.

Alonso, from the center-right National Action party (PAN), took office earlier this month after a violent, hotly contested election. An electoral tribunal had to validate the results months after the vote amid accusations of fraud.

“May they rest in peace; (the PAN) is in mourning,” the PAN president, Marko Cortes, said on Twitter.

Moreno was governor of Puebla between 2011 and 2017.

A number of Mexican politicians have died in aircraft accidents in the past few years, including federal interior ministers in 2008 and 2011. Both were members of the PAN, like Alonso and her husband.

It was not immediately clear what caused the Christmas Eve crash.

The fact the accident occurred just days after Alonso took office triggered speculation of foul play on social media.