Mario López Valdez (born January 18, 1957), popularly known as Malova, is a Mexican businessman and politician, and a member of the National Action Party. He was a senator for the state of Sinaloa from 2006 to 2010 and municipal president of Ahome Municipality from 2002 to 2004. He served as Governor of Sinaloa[1] from 2011 to 2016.

Mario López Valdez
Governor of Sinaloa
In office
January 1, 2011 – December 31, 2016
Preceded byJesús Aguilar Padilla
Succeeded byQuirino Ordaz Coppel
Personal details
Born(1957-01-18)January 18, 1957
Cubiri de la Loma, Sinaloa
Political partyNational Action Party

Background

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Mario López Valdez, a native of Cubiri de la Loma, Sinaloa, is an accounting graduate of the Technological Institute of Los Mochis (ITLM). In 1984, he founded the MALOVA hardware store chain.[2]

Political career

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In 2002, López Valdez was elected municipal president of Ahome Municipality, whose capital is Los Mochis. In 2005 Governor Jesús Aguilar Padilla appointed him secretary of Planning and Development in the state government. He was elected to the Senate in 2006, representing Sinaloa for the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), where he served on the Regional Development and the Environment, Natural Resources and Fisheries, and Agriculture and Water Resources commissions. On March 19, 2010, he resigned his membership in the PRI to run for governor of Sinaloa for the PAN. He was elected July 4, 2010, defeating PRI candidate Jesús Vizcarra Calderón, a wealthy businessman and Culiacán municipal president who had been linked to local drug traffickers, including Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada.[3]

As governor, López Valdez was accused of corruption and links to organized crime.[4][5] In July 2014, he supported a bill that barred journalists from covering crime and public safety stories. However, López Valdez pledged to repeal the law just a few days after its unanimous passage in the state legislature, following a national outcry.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Gov. of drug-plagued Mexico state send kids abroad". Angola Press. November 25, 2011. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
  2. ^ "Ferretería MALOVA: Historia". Ferretería MALOVA. Archived from the original on 30 July 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  3. ^ Wilkinson, Tracy; Ellingwood, Ken (4 July 2010). "Suspicions of drug ties don't hurt candidates". The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 1, 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  4. ^ Johnson, Tim (27 February 2014). "On drug lord's Mexican turf, lines blur among cops, pols, cartel". McClatchy DC News. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  5. ^ Valdez Cárdenas, Javier (6 April 2014). "Los ataques al Noroeste, responsabilidad del gobernador: desplegado de accionistas". La Jornada. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  6. ^ Tucker, Duncan (8 August 2014). "Mexican governor backtracks on state censorship after media outcry". Latin Correspondent. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
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Preceded by Governor of Sinaloa
2010-present
Succeeded by