New Mexico voters reshaped the state’s political landscape Tuesday, setting up competitive November races for governor, secretary of state and key Sandoval County contests — including a Republican commission race that turned on a gun incident and domestic battery arrest in the campaign’s final weeks.
Gov. & Lt. Gov: As predicted, Deb Haaland and Maggie Toulouse Oliver easily captured the Democratic nominations in their races. Republicans Gregg Hull and David Gallegos won contested three-way fields in each race and will be the GOP’s Governor-Lieutenant Governor ticket.
Secretary of State: The Democratic primary was one of the most contested this year. Doña Ana County Clerk Amanda Lopez Askín bested Santa Fe County Clerk Katherine Clark to secure a November ballot spot against Republican Ramona Goolsby, currently an elected member of a local conservation district, of Rio Rancho.
Land Commissioner: Boosted by last-minute spending from national conservation groups, Democrat Juan de Jesus Sanchez of Belen beat State Rep. Matthew McQueen. Sanchez will face Chaves County Commissioner Michael Perry, a Republican.
Other statewide races: For Attorney General, incumbent Democrat Raul Torreź will face Republican Samuel Kane, a Las Cruces attorney. State Auditor Joseph Maestas and State Treasurer Laura Montoya, both Democrats, will be the only candidates printed on the ballot in November since Republicans failed to qualify anyone for these races. It may be a few weeks before we know if write-in candidates Joshua James Ryan Lawrence (for auditor) and James Ellison (for treasurer), a former PRC commissioner who briefly ran for governor, qualified as write-ins for the General Election. If they qualify, the NMGOP will support their campaigns.
Federal races: Socialist Matt Dodson secured a respectable 15% of Democratic votes in the U.S. Senate race. Ben Ray Luján will be the only name on the Nov. ballot but Republicans will rally behind write-in candidate Larry Marker of Chaves County. All three Congressional districts have Republican challengers to Democratic incumbents, but only District 2 in Southern New Mexico and Westside Albuquerque is rated competitive. Incumbent Gabe Vasquez will face Greg Cunningham who was recently endorsed by President Donald Trump.
State House: In HD60, Democrat Luke Jungmann faces Republican Joshua Hernandez, who beat Zac Anaya in the primary. In District 23, Democrat Elise Falanga Taylor runs against Republican incumbent Alan Martinez. In HD44, Democrat Kathleen Cates runs against Republican write-in candidate Adam Stanley Prior. In District 65, Democrat Derrick Lente of Sandia Pueblo runs unopposed as no Republican filed. And in HD 57, Democrat Chriselle Martinez faces Republican incumbent Catherine Cullen.
Sandoval Co. Sheriff: Democrat John Paul Trujillo topped two other candidates in the primary and will face Republican Victor Rodriguez, who beat Alvin Eric Miller in the primary.
Local races to watch in November: A cloud of controversy over a hotel gun incident and a domestic battery arrest derailed Daniel Stoddard’s bid for the Sandoval County Commission Republican nomination, while state Rep. Josh Hernandez turned back a primary challenge from real estate agent Zac Anaya in House District 60.
Edwin Paul Linson defeated Stoddard 55%-45% to claim the District 3 nomination, after Stoddard’s stretch of damaging pre-election coverage — including the withdrawal of endorsements from three Republican state legislators — in the final weeks of his campaign. Linson will face Democrat Frank Smith in November.
Hernandez, a six-year incumbent who cited 28 bills passed and nearly $14 million in capital funding returned to the district, defeated Anaya 66%-34%. Anaya had argued Hernandez’s record hadn’t moved the needle on the state’s persistent rankings near the bottom in education and near the top in violent crime. Hernandez advances to the general election where he’ll face Democrat Luke Jungmann for the seat.
Sandoval County races
County Commissioner, District 1
Democratic Party
PAUL J. MADRID
Republican Party
REBECCA LYNN SKARTWED
County Commissioner, District 3
Democratic Party
FRANK JAMES SMITH JR.
Republican Party
EDWIN PAUL LINSON
State House, District 60
Democratic Party
LUKE NICHOLAS JUNGMANN
Republican Party
JOSHUA N. HERNANDEZ
State House, District 23
Democratic Party
ELISE FALANGA TAYLOR
Republican Party
ALAN T. MARTINEZ
State House, District 44
Democratic Party
KATHLEEN M. CATES
Republican Party
ADAM STANLEY PRIOR
State House, District 65
Democratic Party
DERRICK J. LENTE
No Republican filed to run
State House, District 57
Democratic Party
CHRISELLE VERENE MARTINEZ
Republican Party
CATHERINE JEANETTE CULLEN
County Assessor
Democratic Party
GERRED PRAIRIE
Republican Party
LAWRENCE D. GRIEGO
Probate Judge
Democratic Party
DONNA IVEN TILLMAN
Republican Party
REBECCA A. TORRES
Magistrate Judge, Division 1
Democrat ANN MARIE MAXWELL-CHAVEZ runs unopposed.
Magistrate Judge, Division 2
Democrat F. KENNETH EICHWALD runs unopposed.
Magistrate Judge, Division 3
Democrat DELILAH M. MONTANO-BACA runs unopposed.