Paul Wymer campaigned on keeping Rio Rancho on the same path that three-term Mayor Gregg Hull led the city down. Thursday night, voters’ choice became official when he was sworn in as the city’s new mayor.
The public swearing-in ceremony drew governing body members, state legislators and dozens of supporters to City Hall Thursday. Wymer’s term officially began May 1 with a budget meeting.
“It’s very, very humbling,” Wymer, surrounded by his family, told the crowd. “To be elected mayor of the fastest-growing city in the state of New Mexico — it’s amazing.” He thanked campaign staff, volunteers and financial supporters, and singled out his wife Terri — now the city’s first lady — for keeping him steady through the campaign’s toughest stretches.
A mandate for continuity
Wymer’s election was a clear referendum on Rio Rancho’s direction. He defeated retired teacher and former Sandoval County Democratic Party chair Alexandria Piland in the April 14 runoff, 10,394 votes (63%) to 6,096 (37%), according to the New Mexico Secretary of State’s office — drawing roughly 20% of the city’s 83,751 eligible voters to the polls in a record-setting turnout for a runoff.
Wymer ran explicitly as the continuity candidate, framing the race as a choice for voters satisfied with Hull’s 12-year tenure. “If you think things are going well in the city, then I’m the person that you should put in the seat,” he said before the election. On election night at Turtle Mountain Brewing, he kept the same theme: “We have a great working relationship and we will keep this city running the way it has been. I’m so excited to know that we’re going to keep it steered in the right direction.”
Piland had centered her campaign on water rates and road conditions. The race went to a runoff after neither candidate cleared the 50% majority threshold in the March 3 primary, where Wymer led a six-candidate field with 45% of the vote to Piland’s 27%.
Passing the gavel
The ceremony included a rare moment: the ceremonial handoff of the mayor’s gavel, a tradition that hadn’t taken place in Rio Rancho for 12 years. “It’s been the honor of my life,” Hull told the crowd. “Please get behind Paul and just really lift him up. Pray for him daily, keep him in your thoughts and help him to be as successful as you’ve helped me be.”
Wymer, a licensed architect and planner who has lived in Rio Rancho for more than 40 years, replaces Hull — a three-term mayor now running for governor. During his remarks, Wymer credited both Hull and the city’s governing body for helping shape the plan his administration intends to carry forward. “We’ve got a strong plan. We’ve got a positive plan — a plan that Mayor Hull and myself have been working on for the past several years,” he said.
What’s next
Wymer said he plans to spend the early days of his administration meeting with city staff and getting acquainted with key personnel. He indicated no plans to shake up senior leadership. “I see no change. I have no thoughts on the need or desire to change the key leadership on the fourth floor,” he told The Paper. in Rio Rancho after the election, referring to the executive offices at City Hall. “They’ve been doing an excellent job.”
One change is unavoidable: Wymer’s move to the mayor’s office leaves his District 4 council seat vacant — a situation the city says has not arisen since Rio Rancho incorporated as a municipal government in 1981. Under Section 2.06.B of the Rio Rancho City Charter, Wymer has 60 days from the date the vacancy occurs to appoint a qualified successor, subject to confirmation by the full Governing Body. If the council declines to confirm his choice, he has 45 days to name another candidate. The appointed successor would serve until the March 2028 municipal election.