Blue wave
An expected wave of Democratic votes may have been more of a tide nationwide, as Democrats plucked control of the US House from Republicans, but lost other key races. Here in New Mexico, though, Democrats had a banner night. They won all statewide offices, significantly expanded their majority in the state House of Representatives, and even grabbed some judicial races from Republican appointees. Michelle Lujan Grisham is your next governor.
Not over in CD2
Yvette Herrell leads Xochitl Torres Small in the traditionally Republican 2nd Congressional District by less than 2,000 votes. While most news outlets have called the race for Herrell, Heath Haussamen at NMPolitics says Doña Ana County has yet to count 4,000 absentee ballots. While it would take a near miracle for Torres Small to make up the difference in those votes alone, she doesn't have to: Haussamen explains that the results of almost 8,000 absentee votes haven't been posted yet. Counting resumes this morning. If it those ballots break the same way as the county did—62 percent for Torres Small—the race could narrow to a few dozen votes, sending it into automatic recount territory. Democrats haven't held every state and federal office along with majorities in the Roundhouse in more than half a century.
Big night for women
It's close to a female majority in the state House of Representatives. Women picked up a handful of open seats, defended their own and toppled a few men in power to come close to what would be the country's second state legislative chamber ever to have more women than men. Democratic women did particularly well last night in legislative races, on the Court of Appeals and in a somewhat surprising victory for Stephanie Garcia Richard in the land commissioner's race.
Ethics, elections, buses and bonds
If you're wondering about the ethics commission, municipal elections moving to November, the blue buses getting continued funding from gross receipts tax or bond issues statewide … everything passed. Most ballot measures sailed through the approval process by voters.
Congress has a sort-of new look
Democrats held the 1st Congressional District, as Deb Haaland won an historic victory as a Native American US Representative. Yvette Herrell, were she to hang on to her lead down south, would also achieve such an honor. Ben Ray Luján won re-election easily, as did Martin Heinrich, who trounced two other challengers and easily topped 50 percent anyway. Unless CD 2 flips, that's the same parties in federal seats, with a couple of new faces.
Independents, write-ins don’t dent
Heather Nordquist, Jarratt Applewhite and Mike Anaya all ran legitimate races for state and local offices, but none appeared to have grabbed the seat they were eyeing. Anaya's race against Rudy Garcia was in flux last night, though later results seemed to indicate Garcia would have enough votes to win a Santa Fe County Commission seat.
To protect the water
Meanwhile, in other news (there was a little), SFR caught up with San Felipe Pueblo's Dion Ortiz in a North Dakota county jail. He's the second New Mexican to serve a sentence for protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline's incursion into the Standing Rock Native community.
Breaking Bad back?
A carefully worded press statement from the New Mexico Film Office announcing the shooting of a movie called Greenbrier has some saying the classic New Mexico television series is headed to the big screen.
Last call for entries
SFR's annual writing contest closes the books today. It's $10 to enter and the winners get published in our first December issue. The contest is open to fiction and non-fiction entries and this year's theme is "I shouldn't say this, but…"
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