Sam Bregman

Provide a short bio of yourself and tell us how you got into public service?

I’ve spent more than 30 years fighting for New Mexicans as a prosecutor, attorney, small business owner, and now Bernalillo County District Attorney. I started as an Assistant DA because I believed justice should protect working families, not just the powerful.

Over the years, I helped create hate crime protections and founded the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner program to support survivors. Public service, to me, means solving real problems and standing up for people who need someone in their corner. I’m running for governor because New Mexico deserves leadership that fights and wins for its future.

What is one problem in New Mexico that you believe state government is currently failing at—and what would you do differently in your first 100 days?

The state may not be failing, but affordability is a problem affecting so many people. Too many families are working hard but falling behind as housing, health care, and everyday costs keep rising.

In my first 100 days, I’d launch an aggressive affordability agenda: cut taxes for working families with children, speed up homebuilding by slashing red tape, expand access to childcare, and lower health care costs by growing our provider workforce.

Government should make life easier, not harder. New Mexicans need relief now and they deserve a governor focused on their bottom line.

Crime and public safety dominate voter concern—what specifically would change in how New Mexico handles repeat offenders, and what would success look like after two years? How would you address the ongoing issue of gun crime involving youth?

Repeat violent offenders would face swift prosecution, tougher penalties, and no more endless revolving-door justice. I’d expand specialty courts for addiction cases, but chronic violent criminals would be held fully accountable.

After two years, success means lower violent crime, fewer repeat offenders, and safer neighborhoods. On youth gun crime, I’d modernize the Children’s Code, implement zero tolerance for guns on school grounds across the state, require tracing of gun sources, and invest in mentoring, job training, and intervention programs. Accountability for violence, opportunity for prevention, that’s how you break the cycle.

Name one specific change you would make that would significantly improve New Mexico’s standing in terms of poverty and education?

I’d make sure every child reads at grade level by third grade. If you can’t read by third grade, every subject becomes harder, dropout risk rises, and poverty becomes harder to escape.

My plan funds literacy coaches, trains every K-3 teacher in the science of reading, identifies struggling students early, and gets parents involved fast. This is one of the highest-return investments government can make. Strong readers become stronger graduates, stronger workers, and stronger communities. Fix literacy early, and you change New Mexico’s future.

New Mexico relies heavily on oil and gas revenue to fund state government—what is your plan for the state budget if those revenues decline?

We need discipline now so we’re prepared later. I’d protect reserves, stop wasteful spending, and prioritize core services like education, health care, and public safety. At the same time, we must diversify our economy by growing industries like film, clean energy, aerospace, health tech, manufacturing, and tourism.

New Mexico cannot depend on one revenue stream forever. My approach is simple: save when times are strong, spend responsibly, and build new engines of growth so families aren’t left vulnerable when markets change.

Where do you think your own party has gotten it wrong in New Mexico—and what would you change even if it’s unpopular within your base?

My party has too often been hesitant to speak clearly about crime and accountability. You can care about reform and still insist on public safety. Working families, seniors, and small business owners deserve to feel safe in their homes and neighborhoods.

I’ll say what some don’t want to hear: violent offenders must face consequences, and excuses won’t fix broken communities. At the same time, we should invest in treatment, prevention, and opportunity. Compassion without accountability fails. Accountability without compassion falls short. We need both.

Name one program or initiative currently funded by the state that you would cut, reduce, or eliminate—and explain why.

I would cut wasteful bureaucracy and excessive administrative spending that never reaches classrooms, patients, or neighborhoods. Too much money gets trapped in layers of management, consultants, and duplication while families see no results.

In education alone, I want more dollars in classrooms, teacher pay, tutoring, and student support, not overhead. Every agency should justify every dollar. If a program can’t show measurable outcomes, it should be reduced or ended. Taxpayer money should solve problems, not sustain bureaucracy.