By Kevin Hendricks — New Mexico voters just got a cheat sheet — the legal kind. Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver and Attorney General Raúl Torrez released a joint advisory Tuesday spelling out election deadlines, who belongs at a polling place and what crosses the line into voter intimidation.

There are no early surprises in the first week of early voting for the 2026 election. About 30,000 votes were cast statewide through Monday, according to the Secretary of State. Democrats dominate the early turnout with 59% of the total, while Republicans sit at 27% and independents account for 14%.The

According to Greggory Hull, the Republican candidate for New Mexico governor, this could be the year his party wins the election for the state’s top office. The Daily Record spoke to Republicans at this event and reached out to local Democrats by telephone the same evening who didn’t attend. Hull

Republican congressional candidate Ndidiamaka “Didi” Okpareke used a televised debate Monday to repeatedly challenge incumbent Democrat U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury over New Mexico’s affordability crisis, poor educational outcomes, and what Okpareke portrayed as a gap between federal spending announcements and results families can actually see. The debate, hosted by KOAT

Vasquez & CunninghamA look through the sole ABQ Journal poll of New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District paints a grim picture for Republican challenger Greg Cunningham, virtually shutting down his pathways to victory.To stay competitive, the retired APD detective needed to hold off Democratic incumbent Rep. Gabe Vasquez in the populous

One of the original sponsors of New Mexico’s proposed constitutional amendment to begin paying state lawmakers is facing fresh scrutiny over her own attendance record, as an opposition group argues voters should demand stronger accountability before approving annual legislative salaries. Our Values PAC released an analysis Sunday examining Democrat state

By Kevin Hendricks New Mexico hunters who keep striking out in the big game draw just got some fresh ammunition. Attorney General Raúl Torrez says the state law reserving 10% of draw licenses for hunters who hire outfitters violates the New Mexico Constitution. Torrez concluded in a formal opinion dated

By Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico — U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) made his second New Mexico visit Monday evening in support of Republican Greg Cunningham, where he led a fundraiser in Las Cruces in the final stretch of the closely watched 2nd Congressional District race. Johnson last visited

By Pat Davis, New Mexico Political Report — For most government workers and union members, Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples’ Day is the Monday cap to a three-day weekend. But that is not true for the U.S. Senate staff and local building trades members working to keep up with Sen.

More voters in the populous ABQ metro are withholding judgment on the gubernatorial race than most other regions, appearing to prevent Democrat Deb Haaland from reaching the key 50 percent mark in her race against Republican Gregg Hull.The second and final poll on the contest from the ABQ Journal—taken October

Republican gubernatorial nominee Gregg Hull walked onto a KOB 4 debate stage Thursday night, prepared for a face-to-face showdown with Democrat Deb Haaland. Instead, he found an empty podium. Haaland did not appear, citing a previously scheduled commitment with farmers, ranchers, and agricultural interests in southern New Mexico. That left

A bipartisan permitting reform bill co-led by U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., is drawing broad support from labor unions, energy producers, environmental and policy nonprofits, business organizations, and state and local government groups as it seeks to speed federal approval of energy and infrastructure projects while maintaining environmental safeguards. This

By Kevin Hendricks New Mexico college students chasing quantum computing careers may soon find internships and research jobs closer to home. Tokyo-based Fujitsu, one of the world’s largest tech companies, will set up a quantum computing research center in the state, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Thursday. The center will

By Kevin Hendricks New Mexico voters heard a campaign pitch from a familiar voice Wednesday. Former President Barack Obama wants them to elect Democrat Deb Haaland as their next governor. The endorsement comes with early voting underway in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. In a

Sen. StewartMimi's mess is getting messier.It's revealed in newly released police video from the Santa Fe PD that at her 2024 auto accident, Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart phoned the Governor's office and asked them to send the state police to the scene to handle the investigation. The request

Newly released police body-camera footage is shedding new light on a 2024 Santa Fe crash involving one of New Mexico’s most powerful lawmakers — including the revelation that Senate President Pro Tempore Mimi Stewart called the Governor’s Office after striking a pedestrian and told responding officers that New Mexico State

By Kevin Hendricks Alamogordo residents asked state regulators last week to test PNM’s meters. Now the regulators’ own staff wants to do exactly that. The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission’s Public Interest Advocacy Staff filed a petition Tuesday asking commissioners to authorize a formal investigation into PNM’s estimated and delayed

Gregg Hull (Journal)Republican gubernatorial candidate Gregg Hull faced off with the cost-of-living crisis and scored, but to win the argument his messaging may need to be sharpened.While Santa Fe is tied in knots over what to do with billions of oil revenue flowing into state coffers—and as voters suffer exceptionally

By Joshua Bowling, Source New Mexico — New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez is pushing back against the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s review of a proposed gas pipeline intended to power the Project Jupiter data center, calling it “inadequate.” Texas-based Energy Transfer early this year asked federal regulatory officials

By Kevin Hendricks Sen. Cindy Nava once spent her days in the Roundhouse hallways as an undocumented student volunteer, watching lawmakers she couldn’t vote for decide her future. Now she’ll be the one counting their votes. New Mexico Senate Democrats elected Nava, a Democrat from Bernalillo, as Senate Majority Whip

She’s a political superstar on the national stage, but Deb Haaland has yet to close the deal with New Mexico voters in her race to become the next governor, despite raising over $17 million and holding a massive name ID advantage over Republican Gregg Hull.The SurveyUSA poll taken for KOB-TV

By Kevin Hendricks, Route 66 Independent & NM Political Report — District 5 Bernalillo County Commission candidate Thomas Riley says he wears a ring bearing the Confederate flag as an act of “open rebellion” against the federal government, and he wants the county’s Sheriff’s Office to cooperate with U.S. Immigration

By Kevin Hendricks, nm.news — New Mexico voters can start casting ballots Oct. 6 for the Nov. 3 general election. There’s no reason to wait in line on Election Day, or to walk into the booth guessing. Early voting opens Oct. 6 at county clerk offices. On Oct. 17 it

By Kevin Hendricks Major League Baseball won’t build its next field of dreams in Grand Teton National Park. But New Mexico’s senior senator says the league hasn’t ruled out other national parks, and he wants answers before anyone yells “play ball.” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich,

A new KOB 4/SurveyUSA poll is showing what is increasingly difficult to dismiss in New Mexico’s race for governor: Democrat Deb Haaland is ahead, but Republican Gregg Hull remains within single digits with less than a month until Election Day. The survey of 567 likely voters found Haaland at 47%

President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart pushed back a challenge from Sen. Liz Stefanics at Sunday's caucus of Senate Democrats to keep the top leadership post in the Senate. Meanwhile, Sen. Linda Trujillo beat out two challengers to become the new Majority Leader; Sen. Cindy Nava took over as Majority Whip

By Pat Davis, New Mexico Political Report — President Donald Trump officially endorsed Republican Greg Cunningham’s bid for Congress in a social media post today where the president once again called on New Mexicans to rename the state “New America” and mispronounced the Hispanic pronunciation of current Democratic Congressman Gabe

A new campaign advertisement for Democrat U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez is leaning heavily into law enforcement — but its biggest claim does not survive a look at the federal spending records. The ad features Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen declaring, “Congressman Gabe Vasquez supports law enforcement. Period.” Then comes the

A new television ad is targeting Constitutional Amendment 4, the November ballot measure sponsored by Democrats and opposed by most Republicans that would allow New Mexico legislators to receive annual salaries tied to the state’s median household income. Our Values PAC announced Thursday that it is opposing the amendment and

Deb Haaland has taken some hard hits over Project Jupiter. She was especially scorched by anti-Jupiter activists for taking over $85,000 in campaign contributions from developers of the giant data center in Doña Ana County and then refusing to return those contributions.Now she is being flayed on social media for

By Kevin Hendricks, New Mexico Political Report — New Mexico communities overwhelmed by floodwaters can now tap up to $3.75 million in state emergency money and call on the National Guard for backup. Lt. Gov. Howie Morales, filling in for Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is out of state, signed

By Kevin Hendricks, NM Political Report — New Mexico families watching their electric bills climb have a stake in a bipartisan energy bill that Sen. Martin Heinrich hopes to bring to a Senate vote days after the November election. He says its odds are the best he’s seen. This story

New Mexico’s controversial seven-day waiting period for firearm purchases has suffered another major legal defeat, and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Attorney General Raúl Torrez are now appealing — extending a constitutional fight that has followed the law almost from the day it took effect. The important wrinkle: despite the

Opponents of a constitutional amendment that would provide some of the highest legislative salaries in the nation to New Mexico lawmakers are confident they can defeat it, but they could easily lose if they don't get a quick cash infusion to spread their message. National and local progressive groups have

New Mexico was being hammered Tuesday by a sprawling flood emergency that triggered mandatory evacuations, a threatened dam failure, submerged highways, school closures, National Guard rescues, and warnings of potentially catastrophic flooding from Doña Ana County to Santa Fe and Ruidoso. Some of the most alarming scenes unfolded in the

By Kevin Hendricks Alamogordo residents came to Tuesday’s town hall carrying their PNM bills. Some were double their usual amount, some triple, and one topped $1,900. They wanted state regulators to explain how the utility arrived at those numbers. The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission hosted the two-hour town hall

In a break with tradition, Senate Democrats will caucus this Sunday to choose their leaders for the next two years. Usually, the meeting is held following the November general election, but not this time. The date switch, which we learned of after first blogging that the meeting would be in

Project Jupiter’s troubles are no longer confined to permitting fights and political battles in New Mexico. They are now showing up on Wall Street. Oracle shares have continued sliding after the technology giant invoked a force majeure provision tied to Project Jupiter, the enormous artificial intelligence data-center complex under construction

Campaign '26 may have reached an inflection point with Deb Haaland’s decision to forego all debates with Republican opponent Gregg Hull. By stepping away from the "debate over debates"—a distraction her team characterized as a sideshow—she neutralized the issue.Haaland turned a potential vulnerability—her perceived hesitation around formal debates—into a display

Guest Commentary By Brian Colón, NM Managing Partner, Singleton Schreiber — FEMA has spent years arguing that the law Congress passed to compensate Hermit’s Peak-Calf Canyon (HPCC) Fire victims only covers losses with a price tag, for example a home, a fence, a business, or a medical bill. Everything else,

A longtime political operative who managed Deb Haaland’s gubernatorial campaign at its launch is now listed as a lobbyist for a company powering Project Jupiter — adding another connection between the Democrat gubernatorial nominee’s political orbit and the massive artificial intelligence data-center industry she has recently vowed to rein in.

New Mexico attorney Mike Seibel has secured a $200,000 settlement in a closely watched wrongful-death case involving the estate of a 26-week unborn child — a case Seibel says marks an unprecedented legal development in litigation against abortionists. The lawsuit, Wabbington v. Boyd, was brought against longtime late-term abortionist Curtis

By Kevin Hendricks In 2010, Mark Zuckerberg told Facebook users, “We do not and never will sell any of your information to anyone.” A Santa Fe jury didn’t buy it. Jurors in state District Court found Friday that Meta Platforms Inc., formerly Facebook Inc., willfully violated New Mexico’s Unfair Practices

Republican state Sen. David Gallegos of Eunice used New Mexico’s first lieutenant governor debate Thursday to draw sharp contrasts with Democrat State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard on crime, government dependency, abortion, education, data centers, and the direction of state government. The hourlong debate, hosted at the Albuquerque Journal and

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández wants New Mexico to hit pause on new data centers, saying Thursday that companies should first prove they can protect the state’s water, keep electricity costs from passing onto families and bring jobs and benefits to local communities. In

Democrat gubernatorial nominee Deb Haaland used a national NewsNation interview Wednesday to pitch herself as an experienced manager, promise a day-one pause on new large-scale data centers, and blame President Donald Trump for a host of New Mexicans’ economic problems. But several of the interview’s most notable moments came from

The Haaland campaign ended debate discussions with the Hull campaign late Thursday after both sides failed to reach an agreeable date. There will be no debate between the two governor candidates before the Nov. 3 election.Here are the emails each sent regarding their final clash over debating: Haaland’s campaign: “Deb

By Pat Davis, nm.news — I’m tired of hearing and reading about how Deb Haaland and Gregg Hull won’t debate each other. Their campaigns will both say they have tried and this week they both pledged to show up – to different debates in different places and on different dates.

By Kevin Hendricks, New Mexico Political Report — New Mexico has poured $524 million into housing since 2022, but households with the lowest incomes get about a penny of every income-restricted dollar. The state also can’t consistently say what the rest bought, according to a Legislative Finance Committee report presented

Is the Deb Haaland camp terrified that permitting her to debate Republican gubernatorial opponent Gregg Hull could cost her the election or something close to it? Haaland has so far refused to debate Hull, making her only the second major-party candidate to skip a general election TV debate in the

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — Years after the largest wildfire in New Mexico history, the National Guard is still helping northern New Mexico communities respond to flooding across the burn scar. Now, the state wants FEMA to pay millions for that work. The New Mexico Department of Homeland Security

Gregg Hull Struggling to recover from her first major campaign blunder, Deb Haaland insisted she can "chew gum and walk at the same time." But the line only prompted critics to pile on, demanding she prove her multitasking prowess by finally agreeing to a live TV debate with her Republican

Democrat U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez is accusing Republican challenger Greg Cunningham of avoiding southern New Mexico voters for not accepting a proposed Univision debate — even as Cunningham says he has already accepted three televised debate invitations and Vasquez has publicly confirmed only one of them. The dispute has become

Democrat gubernatorial nominee Deb Haaland’s attempt to appear tough on New Mexico’s increasingly controversial data center boom ran headfirst into a glaring campaign cash problem Thursday after she was pressed on donations tied to Project Jupiter — and did not commit to giving the money back. At a press conference

Deb HaalandNew Mexican politics are not about to make a dramatic shift to the left if Democrat Deb Haaland wins the governorship November 3. The progressive wing of her party may be ignoring what she says—as they often have with Gov. Lujan Grisham—but facts speak for themselves. Haaland is planting

By Jesse Jones, The Paper. — New Mexico’s data center boom could drive up electricity rates for residents while putting more pressure on the state’s water supply. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deb Haaland announced her support for a statewide moratorium on new large-scale data centers as electricity demand grows and drought

Democrat U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico is openly telling supporters that House Democrats are already preparing for “in-depth oversight and impeachments of administration officials” next year if voters hand the party control of the U.S. House in November. The comments came in a video circulating on X this

Haaland and HullHow can the Republican candidate for governor run an effective campaign if the industry most critical to their fundraising is not going all-in? That’s the dilemma confronting GOP standard-bearer Gregg Hull.In his latest financial report covering June 28 through Sept. 7, we count about $300,000 in direct and

Democrat gubernatorial nominee Deb Haaland outraised Republican Gregg Hull during New Mexico’s latest campaign-finance reporting period. But a line-by-line review of the candidates’ actual reports shows a much more complicated picture than the topline numbers alone: Haaland is operating a heavily nationalized, high-volume fundraising and campaign apparatus, while Hull’s donor

New Mexico state Rep. Joseph Hernandez’s latest campaign-finance report is in, and the spending pattern previously documented by the Piñon Post did not end with the earlier filings. The Shiprock lawmaker’s First General Report, filed Sept. 14 with the New Mexico Secretary of State, shows another $6,797.40 in campaign expenditures,

Vasquez and CunninghamWhat’s with Greg Cunningham’s obsession with border security and crime? Doesn’t he know those issues have fallen down the list of voter concerns as an economic tidal wave heads towards the state in the form of inflation? Won’t the economy (and Trump) be the deciding factors in his

Democrat U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez and gubernatorial nominee Deb Haaland welcomed Joe Biden’s former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to Las Cruces on Sunday, tying their campaigns to one of the Biden administration’s highest-profile former Cabinet officials — whose four years overseeing the nation’s transportation system were marked by a series

Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez went on the offensive against Republican challenger Greg Cunningham after Cunningham used a nationally televised GOP convention speech to hammer crime, border security and fentanyl in New Mexico — accusing his opponent of abandoning New Mexicans to “kiss the ring” of President Donald Trump. Cunningham,

Republican congressional candidate Greg Cunningham used a national stage in Dallas Thursday to put New Mexico’s crime, border and fentanyl problems at the center of his campaign against Democrat U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez, delivering a roughly four-minute address at the Republican Party’s first-ever midterm convention. Cunningham, a retired Albuquerque police

Make it three in a row. That appears to be the case with the five statewide executive offices on the November ballot which went to Democrats in 2018 and 2022 and are set for a three-peat.That expectation is grounded in ABQ Journal polling showing races for Attorney General, Secretary of

Republican congressional candidate Greg Cunningham is set to appear on the national stage this week as the GOP puts New Mexico’s closely watched 2nd Congressional District contest in the spotlight at its first-ever midterm convention in Dallas. Cunningham, the Republican nominee challenging Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez, is among a

Rep. Andrea Romero Alright. Let's dive in to all the political news from New America. . . er. . . New Mexico. Talk about crashing and burning. State Rep. Andrea Romero has done both in grand style, leaving a promising political career in ruins. It is a story no one

President Donald Trump spent Sunday doing what he has repeatedly proven capable of doing: posting an outrageous meme, sitting back, and watching Democrats rush to respond. This time, New Mexico’s entire Democratic political establishment practically lined up to take the bait. Trump shared an altered map of New Mexico on

The controversy surrounding Democrat state Rep. Andrea Romero is widening after a taxpayer-funded public relations firm hired to assist New Mexico’s Jeffrey Epstein “truth commission” became entangled in Romero’s personal political crisis — and then abruptly parted ways with the commission. Romero, who chairs the Survivors Truth Commission examining Epstein’s

Hull and HaalandThe first major public poll of the '26 gubernatorial chase seems to rule out a blow-out win by Democrat Deb Haaland but nudges only slightly, if at all, that big boulder that lies on the path to victory for Republican Gregg Hull. The ABQ Journal survey conducted August

Sen. Wirth and Sen. TrujilloThere will be a new power player in Santa Fe come November and their rise to prominence will have little to do with the election. Sen. Peter Wirth, who has served in the powerful position of Senate Majority Leader since 2017, is leaving leadership and indications

Hull and HaalandThe sleepy '26 gubernatorial race is about to be jolted awake. Whether it returns to a coma-like condition may be dependent on the severity of the jolt. At the end of the month--August 30 to be precise--the ABQ Journal will release their first poll of the contest featuring

We could discuss endlessly why a state with the well-deserved nickname the "Land of Enchantment" has undergone one of the greatest periods of population stagnation in its over 400 year history. Instead let's focus on one aspect of that stagnation impacting our politics. That would be how folks here are

UPDATE: The ABQ City Council Monday evening said the panel has "dismissed" the proposed increase in the gross receipts tax. Affordability is the buzzword for the '26 campaign but that falls on deaf ears among some members of the ABQ City Council. Two councilors in particular, Council President Klarissa Peña,

If they're going to move the New Mexico presidential primary to February 15, 2008 instead of holding it late in the nominating cycle in June, how about a favorite son candidate (or is it favorite daughter now)? As the fourth state to go up to bat under a Democratic National

Sen. PopeThe race for lieutenant governor is revealing a much more aggressive left wing in the state Democratic party with important implications for economic policy should Deb Haaland become the next governor. The race for the number two spot features two leading hopefuls--term-limited State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard and

Gregg HullThe Gregg Hull ship has sprung another dangerous leak with DC pundits bailing out amid a developing financial crisis for the Republican gubernatorial nominee. The Cook Political Report has rerated his race with Democratic nominee Deb Haaland, taking it from "Likely Democratic" to "Solid Democratic." That is only going

Hull & HaalandThere will be no early start for Gregg Hull. The '26 GOP gubernatorial nominee is stuck in neutral following the first month of the campaign, lacking the financial muscle to engage Democrat Deb Haaland whose well-oiled money machine has already churned out over $13 million with more to

Haaland & Garcia RichardThere's little doubt that outgoing State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard is highly likely to become the Democratic party's lieutenant governor nominee after securing the endorsement of gubernatorial nominee Deb Haaland but things could still get messy. (Haaland video here.)Notably, the state Democratic party will not conduct

With Primary '26 in the books, we're taking a blogging break so posts will be occasional. To be notified via email whenever we add a post, subscribe to the blog by using the link on the right or at this link. Thanks for your continued interest. Now a final look