By Mike Cook
The New Mexico Legislature is a powerful body of 42 state senators and 70 state representatives charged with, among other duties, approving New Mexico’s more than $7 billion state budget and redistricting after the decennial census. Legislators receive no salary but are paid per diem. State representatives serve two-year terms, while state senators serve four-year terms. There are no term limits for legislators.
All 112 seats in the legislature are on the Nov. 3 ballot this year, including the 14 that contain some portion of Doña Ana County: eight in the state House of Representatives and six in the state Senate. All local races are contested between Democrats and Republicans.
Here are the 14 legislative races:
NEW MEXICO HOUSE RACES (districts are entirely in Doña Ana County unless otherwise noted):
- District 33: Incumbent Democrat Micaela Lara Cadena, research director for Bold Futures New Mexico nonprofit, of Mesilla is running for her third term. Her opponent is Republican Beth E. Miller, a freelance graphic designer, of Las Cruces. Visit https://lara-cadena4nm.com/ and www.BethForNewMexico.com.
- District 34: Incumbent Democrat Raymundo Lara, TI program coordinator for the Gadsden Independent School District, is running for his second term. His opponent is Republican Dawn E. Ladd, a business owner and distributor of nutritional products. Both are from La Mesa. Visit www.facebook.com/RayLaraforStateRepresentative and www.dawnladdnm.com.
- District 35: Incumbent Democrat. Angelica Rubio, the former director of New Mexico CAFÉ who is now an independent contractor and consultant, is seeking her third term. Her opponent is Republican Richelle A. Ponder, former owner of AAMCO Transmissions who currently is a real estate investor. Both are from Las Cruces. Visit http://rubionm35.com/ and www.Richelleponderfornm.com.
- District 36: Incumbent Democrat Nathan Small, a conservationist and spouse of U.S. Rep. Xochitl Torres Small, D-N.M., is seeking his third term. His opponent is Republican Brandi L. Polanco, a teacher. Both are from Las Cruces. Visit https://nathanpsmall.com/ and www.brandipolanco4nmhouse.com.
- District 37: This race pits two current office holders against each other. Incumbent Democrat state Rep. Joanne Ferrary is seeking her third term. Her opponent is Republican Isabella Solis, who was elected to the Doña Ana County Commission as a Democrat in 2016. She switched to Republican in 2019 and filed for the House seat instead of running for re-election to the county commission. Ferrary is retired after a career with the New Mexico Department of Transportation. Solis was with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Tierra del Sol housing corporation before being elected to the county commission. Visit https://joanne4nm.com/ and isabellasolis.com.
- District 39 (Doña Ana, Grant and Sierra counties): Incumbent Democrat Rodolpho S. “Rudy” Martinez is seeking his third consecutive term in the House. He held the seat 2007-14 before losing to Republican John Zimmerman of Las Cruces in 2014 and then winning back the seat by defeating Zimmerman in 2016. Martinez’s 2020 opponent is Republican Luis M. Terrazas. Both are from Silver City. Martinez retired after 34 years with Chino Mines and is a licensed journeyman. Terrazas owns Terrazas Funeral Chapels. Visit www.rudymartineznm.com and www.luisterrazas4nm.com.
- District 52: Incumbent Democrat Doreen Gallegos is running for her fifth term in the House. She is House majority whip. Her opponent is Republican John Foreman. Gallegos is executive director of Mesilla Valley Court Appointed Special Advocates. Foreman is superintendent of Mesilla Valley Christian School. Both are from Las Cruces. Visit http://doreengallegos.com/ and www.foreman4hd52.com.
- District 53 (Doña Ana and Otero counties): Incumbent Democrat Willie Madrid is seeking his second term. His opponent is Republican Ricky Little. Little defeated Madrid to win the seat in 2016 and Madrid defeated Little in 2018, making 2020 their third consecutive race against each other. Madrid is a member of the Gadsden Independent School District’s education support staff. Little, who held the District 53 seat 2011-12 and 2015-18, is a small business owner. Both are from Chaparral. Visit www.williemadrid53.com and RickLittleForRep.com.
NEW MEXICO SENATE RACES (districts are entirely in Doña Ana County unless otherwise noted):
- District 31: Incumbent Democrat Joseph Cervantes of Las Cruces, an attorney, is running for his third term, after 12 years of services in the New Mexico House. His opponent is John Thomas Roberts of Anthony. Visit www.joe4nm.com. The Bulletin could not locate a website or Facebook page for the Roberts campaign.
- District 34 (Doña Ana, Otero and Eddy counties): Incumbent Republican Ron Griggs of Alamogordo has held the seat since December 2012 and is seeking his third term. Griggs is a small business owner and former mayor of Alamogordo, where he also served as a city commissioner. His opponent is Democrat Darren M. Kugler of Cloudcroft, a former Las Cruces district judge who resigned in 2017. Visit www.facebook.com/ron.griggs.31. The Bulletin could not locate a website or Facebook page for the Kugler campaign.
- District 35 (Doña Ana, Luna, Hidalgo and Sierra counties): This open seat pits Democrat Neomi O. Martinez-Parra of Lordsburg against Republican Crystal R. Diamond, a rancher from Elephant Butte who grew up in Las Cruces. Martinez-Parra, a special education teacher, defeated incumbent John Arthur Smith of Deming in the Democratic primary. The seat has been held by a Deming resident for more than 60 years. Visit Neomi4NMSenate.com and www.DiamondforNM.com.
- District 36: Incumbent Democrat Jeff Steinborn, a conservationist and president of the Film Las Cruces nonprofit, is seeking his second term in the Senate after serving eight years in the New Mexico House. His opponent is Republican Kimberly A. Skaggs, who owns a water-well drilling business with her husband. Both are from Las Cruces. Visit www.jeffsteinborn.com and www.kimberlyskaggs.com.
- District 37: Incumbent Democrat Bill Soules, a retired educator and former member of the Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education, is seeking his third term. His opponent is Republican David W. Gallus, who retired from the Philadelphia Police Department in 1996 after 10 years on street patrol and 15 as a police diver. Both are from Las Cruces. Visit www.facebook.com/Soules4Senate37 and davegallus.com.
- District 38: This is an open seat. Democrat Carrie Hamblen, president and CEO of the Green Chamber of Las Cruces, is running against Republican Charles R. Wendler, a retired educator and small-business owner. Both are from Las Cruces. Hamblen defeated incumbent Mary Kay Papen in the June Democratic primary. Papen had held the seat for 20 years and was president pro-tem of the state Senate. Visit https://hamblennmsenate38.com/ and cwendler.com.
Among seats in the House that include Doña Ana County, six are located entirely in the county, one includes parts of Grant, Sierra and Doña Ana counties and one includes parts of Doña Ana and Otero counties. Among the 16 candidates for House seats, nine live in Las Cruces, two in Chaparral, two in La Mesa and one in Mesilla (all Doña Ana County); and two live in Silver City (Grant County).
Among local Senate seats, four are entirely in Doña Ana County; one includes parts of Doña Ana, Luna, Hidalgo and Sierra counties; and one is mostly comprised of parts of Otero and Eddy counties but also includes two of Doña Ana County’s 172 precincts. Among the 12 candidates for those Senate seats, seven live in Las Cruces and one each in Anthony (Doña Ana County); Alamogordo and Cloudcroft (Otero County), Elephant Butte (Sierra County) and Lordsburg (Hidalgo County).
For district maps, visit www.nmlegis.gov/Members/Districts and click on the district number for House and Senate districts. Contact the Doña Ana County Bureau of Elections at 575-647-7428 and elections@donaanacounty.org. Visit https://donaanacounty.org/elections.
