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		</div><div id="taboola-top-carousel-thumbnails" class="taboola" data-taboolaposition="beforeArticle"><strong style="color: #030303; font-size: 1em;">Mexican governor Martha Erika Alonso was killed in a helicopter crash Monday that killed five</strong></div>
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<div class="taboola" data-taboolaposition="beforeArticle"><strong style="color: #030303; font-size: 1em;">Her husband Rafael Moreno Valle was among those who perished when the aircraft went down in Coronango, near the city of Puebla on Christmas Eve</strong></div>
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<div class="taboola" data-taboolaposition="beforeArticle"><strong style="font-size: 1em; color: #030303;">The helicopter pilot Captain Roberto Cope Obregon, co-pilot Captain Marco Antonio Cabera Romero and a third unnamed passenger were also killed alongside the two members of a Mexican political dynasty </strong></div>
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<div class="taboola" data-taboolaposition="beforeArticle"><strong style="font-size: 1em;"><span style="color: #030303;">Former Puebla First lady Alonso, 45, became the first female governor of state less than 10 days earlier, on Dec 14, but her election triggered a hotly-contested reaction and an electoral tribunal held</span></strong></div>
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<div class="taboola" data-taboolaposition="beforeArticle"><strong style="font-size: 1em;"><span style="color: #030303;">Her husband Rafael Valle Rosas, a fellow National Action Party member became senator in Sept</span></strong></div>
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<div class="taboola" data-taboolaposition="beforeArticle"><strong style="font-size: 1em;"><span style="color: #030303;">Prior to that Valle Rosas was governor of Puebla from 2011 to 2017, like his father before him</span></strong></div>
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<h6 class="count-text"><img class="" src="https://i1.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Martha-Erika-Alonso-right-and-her-husband-e-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-left-3.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Martha Erika Alonso (right) and her husband e Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas (left) 3" width="580" height="399" /><strong>Tragedy for Puebla political dynasty: Martha Erika Alonso [right] governor of Mexico&#8217;s state of Puebla was killed in a helicopter crash Monday alongside her husband, Sen. Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas [left]</strong></h6>
<p class="count-text">A Mexican husband-and-wife political power couple have died in a Christmas Eve helicopter crash, officials announced.<br />The newly sworn-in governor of the central Mexican state of Puebla, Martha Erika Alonso, was killed alongside her senator husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas, when the aircraft went down in the small city of Huejotzingo on Monday afternoon.<br />Both pilots and a third passenger were also killed, in the December 24 crash<br />Alonso, 45, had only been sworn into office ten days ago after independent electoral authorities dismissed a challenge of her electoral victory.<br />Meanwhile her husband Valle was also the former Puebla governor and a prominent figure in the opposition National Action Party who had vied unsuccessfully for the party&#8217;s presidential nomination and its internal leadership. The couple who shared a dog, did not appear to have children.</p>
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<h6 class="image-wrap fff-pic"><img id="i-7a31e3f558a58b34" class="blkBorder img-share b-loaded" src="https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2018/12/25/00/7801810-6527943-image-a-48_1545697238874.jpg" alt="Mexican governor Martha Erika Alonso (right) was killed in a helicopter crash Monday alongside her spouse Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas (left)" width="634" height="509" /><strong style="font-size: 1em;">Puebla governor Martha Erika Alonso [right] became governor amid electoral controversy two weeks ago. Her husband, Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas [left], now a senator, who was governor before her, also perished in Monday&#8217;s crash</strong></h6>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><img class="" src="https://i1.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-were-killed-when-their-aircraft-crashed.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Martha Erika Alonso and her husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas were killed when their aircraft crashed" width="580" height="410" /><strong>The small aircraft seen at the fiery crash site, went down in</strong><strong> Santa Maria Coronang, ear </strong><strong>Huetjotzingo, a small city near Mexico&#8217;s second largest city of Puebla on Monday</strong></h6>
<div class="mobile-gallery-icon">Mexico is still reeling from the loss and on Monday afternoon, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador paid tribute to the couple, while Marko Cortes, head of the National Action Party, tweeted he was deeply saddened.<br />&#8216;We are in mourning,&#8217; he wrote.<br />The Agusta 109 helicopter suffered an &#8216;apparent failure which hasn&#8217;t been determined yet&#8217; shortly after taking off from Puebla airport bound for Mexico City on Monday.<br />It crashed in the municipality of Santa Maria Coronango, which is about 3.5 miles north of the city&#8217;s main airport on the western outskirts, federal Public Security Secretary Alfonso Durazo told a news conference.<br />Images of the crash showed a shattered, still smoldering aircraft on the edge of a scorched patch of cornfield.</div>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><strong><img class="" src="https://i0.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-were-killed-when-their-aircraft-crashed.-2.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Martha Erika Alonso and her husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas were killed when their aircraft crashed. 2" width="580" height="419" />Plumes of smoke could be seen at the crash site. The helicopter reportedly, was still on fire when first responders arrived at the scene</strong></h6>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><strong><img class="" src="https://i2.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Aerial-view-of-the-spot-where-Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-e-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-died-in-a-plane-crash-2.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Aerial view of the spot where Martha Erika Alonso and her husband e Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas died in a plane crash 2" width="580" height="398" />Aerial view of the crash site. All five people on board were reported killed</strong></h6>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><img class="" src="https://i1.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Forensic-tem-at-the-spot-where-Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-died-in-a-plane-crash-4.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Forensic tem at the spot where Martha Erika Alonso and her husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas died in a plane crash 4" width="580" height="371" /><strong>A forensic member was pictured on the scene after the crash on Monday</strong></h6>
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<p class="mol-para-with-font">The helicopter pilot and co-pilot have been identified as Captain Roberto Cope Obregon and Captain Marco Antonio Cabera Romero, according to Public Security and Civil Protection Secretary Alfonso Durazo.<br />The other passenger has not yet been named.<br />Mexican Civil Aviation authorities are investigating the cause.<br />Both federal and state officials said they had opened investigations into the cause. The potentially sensitive investigation requires careful handling because President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador&#8217;s Morena party had challenged the validity of Alonso&#8217;s election in July.<br />Ultimately she was sworn in 12 days ago after independent electoral authorities dismissed the challenge.<br />State spokesman Maximiliano Cortazar demanded a &#8216;transparent, impartial and independent&#8217; investigation.</p>
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<h6><strong><img class="" src="https://i2.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Andres-Manuel-the-Mexican-president-1.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Andres Manuel, the Mexican president 1" width="580" height="344" />The Mexican president Andres Manuel tweeted his condolences on Monday, confirming their death</strong></h6>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><strong><img class="" src="https://i0.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Martha-Erika-Alonso-2.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Martha Erika Alonso 2" width="580" height="357" />Dead in 10 days: Gov. Alonso was the first female governor of Puebla and only the seventh nationwide</strong></h6>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><img class="" src="https://i0.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Martha-Erika-Alonso-right-and-her-husband-e-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-left-1.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Martha Erika Alonso (right) and her husband e Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas (left) 1" width="580" height="466" /><strong>Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas [left], governor of Puebla from 2011 to 2017, became Senator in Sept. His wife Martha Alonso [right], in 2015 was the First Lady of Puebla and the second highest ranking in her PAN party. She was sworn in as governor Dec 14</strong></h6>
<div class="mobile-gallery-icon">Lopez Obrador expressed his &#8216;deepest condolences&#8217; via Twitter to the family of on Monday evening.<br />Moreno Valle governed the central state from 2011 to 2017 and was currently a federal senator. Opponents alleged that he had manipulated the election to hand power to his wife.<br />Government agencies and scores of officials, including former President Enrique Pena Nieto, also expressed condolences via statements and social media.<br />Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard tweeted: &#8216;I said hello to [Moreno] in the Senate just a few days ago. Those of us who had the opportunity to know them are sad and troubled.&#8217;<br />Conservative Alonso became the first female governor of Puebla less than two weeks ago on December 14. The center-right candidate narrowly beat opposition from President Obrador&#8217;s favored Miguel Barbosa Huerta on July 1.</div>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><img class="" src="https://i2.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-were-killed-when-their-aircraft-crashed.-3.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Martha Erika Alonso and her husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas were killed when their aircraft crashed. 3" width="580" height="378" /><strong>Teams from the State Attorney&#8217;s Office, Attorney General&#8217;s Office and state Civil Protect personnel were on hand at the site</strong></h6>
<h6><img class="" src="https://i0.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Rescue-efforts-at-the-spot-where-Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-e-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-died-in-a-plane-crash-1.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Rescue efforts at the spot where Martha Erika Alonso and her husband e Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas died in a plane crash 1" width="580" height="371" /><strong> Security members work at the helicopter crash site in Santa Maria Coronango, Puebla, Mexico where Gov. Martha Erika Alonso and her husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas died in a plane crash, Wednesday</strong></h6>
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<h6 class="mobile-gallery-icon"><img class="" src="https://i2.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Martha-Erika-Alonso-left-and-her-husband-e-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-right-2.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Martha Erika Alonso (left) and her husband e Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas (right) 2" width="580" height="613" /><strong>Portrait of Peublo&#8217;s first couple who celebrated their 14th anniversary this year with their dog</strong></h6>
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<div>Her election triggered a violent and hotly-contested reaction and on December 9 a Federal Electoral Tribunal had to validate the results due to accusations of fraud from her National Regeneration Movement National Regeneration Movement, aka the Morena party.<br />Leftist Barbosa said in an interview with Milenio, that it&#8217;s a tragedy and &#8216;it is up to the authorities to do the same so that the causes of the accident are perfectly clear,&#8217; <a class="class" href="https://www.animalpolitico.com/2018/12/martha-erika-alonso-rafael-moreno-valle-desplome-helicoptero/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Animal Politico</a> reported.<br />The reported he declined to answer what would happen now the pair are gone: &#8220;It is not the time to make political comments, it is time for solidarity, beyond the political rivalry that I had with both,&#8221; he reportedly said. <br />&#8220;I do not want to give an opinion on the succession, it&#8217;s time to be supportive&#8221;. </div>
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<p class="imageCaption"><strong><img class="" src="https://i1.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Rescue-efforts-at-the-spot-where-Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-died-in-a-plane-crash-2.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Rescue efforts at the spot where Martha Erika Alonso and her husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas died in a plane crash 2" width="580" height="376" />The cause of the accident was still unknown on Monday night </strong></p>
<p class="imageCaption"><strong><img class="" src="https://i1.wp.com/konniemoments.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Rescue-efforts-at-the-spot-where-Martha-Erika-Alonso-and-her-husband-Rafael-Moreno-Valle-Rosas-died-in-a-plane-crash-3.jpg?zoom=1.25&;ssl=1&;w=450" alt="Rescue efforts at the spot where Martha Erika Alonso and her husband Rafael Moreno Valle Rosas died in a plane crash 3" width="580" height="401" />Emergency rescue personnel, the army and the police arrived to the scene of the crash in Puebla, Mexico</strong></p>
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<div>Once Congress appoints an interim governor, an election &#8211; lasting between three and five months &#8211; must be announced within 10 days.<br />Federal electoral institute official Benito Nacif confirmed it would happen.<br />The fact the accident occurred just days after Alonso &#8211; who celebrated her birthday only one week ago &#8211; took office triggered speculation of foul play on social media, Reuters reported.<br />A number of Mexican politicians have died in aircraft accidents in the past few years, including federal interior ministers in 2008 and 2011.<br />Both were members of the PAN.<br />BBC News reported that 13 people died earlier this year when a minister&#8217;s helicopter crashed into a crowd. The minister survived.<br />From 2015, Puebla First Lady Alonso became second in the power structure of the party behind her husband.Moreno Valle was the grandson of Rafael Moreno Valle, a doctor and politician who also served as the Governor of Puebla from 1969 to 1972<br />Moreno became a federal senator in September. He shared the same name as his father who was Governor of Puebla from 1969 to 1972.<br />The couple married in 2004, celebrated their 14th anniversary this January.</div>
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Christmas Eve tragedy, Mexican political power couple perish in fiery air crash! Puebla governor Martha Erika Alonso, her senator husband killed in helicopter crash, 10 days after she’s sworn in amid controversy
