Mexico bans 17 'false' transgender women running in local elections

A "muxe", wearing a traditional Zapotec woman's costume, dances during a tr
A "muxe", wearing a traditional Zapotec woman's costume, dances during a tr Copyright Reuters/Carlos Jasso
By Marta Rodriguez Martinez
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A Mexican state electoral body banned 17 men from various parties masquerading as transgender candidates in the upcoming elections.

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The LGBT community in Oaxaca, Mexico, is outraged after 17 men falsely identified themselves as transgender women to stand for the upcoming local elections on July 11.

Mexican media reported that various political parties registered men claiming to be transgender women to stand in the upcoming elections for local positions because they were unable to find female candidates.

Thirteen out of the 17 candidates belonged to the Coalicion Por Oaxaca (Coalition for Oaxaca), according to Mexican news website proceso.com.mx.

"In none of the cases reviewed is there a public self-addressing. They didn't even say: we're gay," said Amaranta Gomez, a member of the Muxes community, during a press conference to denounce the fraud.

The 17 men faked being a transgender woman in order to benefit from the gender quota granted by law. As a result of the scandal, their nominations have been cancelled as a precautionary measure.

"They're trampling on the LGBT flag. They attack both the Muxe community and the women because that space belongs to us, not to the men," said another member of the community.

The Oaxaca state electoral body banned the applications of the men who tried to register as transgender candidates last Friday and said they would investigate the alleged fraud by the political parties in question.

Muxes

The indigenous Zapotec cultures of Oaxaca have a long tradition of accepting muxe people, who identify as a third gender. Muxe people are assigned male at birth but do not identify as a single gender at an early age — and choose to be raised as female. In some Zapotec communities, according to the Guardian, muxe people are seen as "good luck and even a blessing".

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