Yvette Herrell’s fourth try at representing New Mexico’s 2nd congressional district still looked like a nail-biter as of late Tuesday night.
The Republican trailed Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez by 4 percentage points — 52% to 48% — Tuesday night, according to unofficial results from the Secretary of State’s Office
Redistricting after the 2020 census made the district more Democratic, with more of Albuquerque within its boundaries. Vasquez ousted Herrell in 2022, winning the seat by 1,350 votes.
Both candidates ran unopposed in the 2024 primaries, setting up a long fight to November.
The campaign heated up in recent weeks, with Vasquez attempting to tie Herrell to former President Donald Trump, Project 2025 and anti-abortion legislation around the country.
Herrell has released attack ads accusing Vasquez of using racial slurs and mentioned a 2005 police report that accused the congressman, then a student at New Mexico State University, of threatening to kill another student.
Vasquez was not charged or arrested in the matter.
The Associated Press had not yet called the race as of midnight Wednesday.