Local pundits weigh in on the Nov. 7 election.
We tried reading Nostradamus. We consulted the Oracle of Delphi. We even asked our Magic 8-Ball. But, less than a week before voters hit the polls in earnest, the outcome of several key political races are still uncertain heading into the Nov. 7 general election.
In lieu of dusting off the Ouija board, we upped the ante and enlisted the expertise of several local politicians, strategists and activists to opine on some of the key election issues and races:
***image1***
"[Attorney general candidate] Jim Bibb has impressed me with his knowledge and his experience, but I don't think he can beat Gary King. I support King even though I think Bibb has a good future ahead of him."
-
Santa Fe County Sheriff Greg Solano.
Solano predicts Democrats will sweep the major statewide and Santa Fe County races.
"It's hard to tell for sure where a lot of these races are going to land, but not enough can be said about the effort Republicans have made to build their party in what has been an otherwise abysmal year for Republicans…I think there are a lot of folks on the GOP side that are going to look at this election season-win or lose-as a success."
-
Whitney Cheshire
is a political consultant, pundit and president of Cheshire Communication Strategies. Cheshire considers the attorney general and land commissioner races "too close to call."
"That [secretary of state] race is probably the single most significant race in this election. I really hope [Republican] Vickie Perea pulls that one out for everyone's sake. We've heard the Democrats spin that phrase "culture of corruption" on the Republicans in Washington [DC], but in New Mexico do we really have a ballot box that can be trusted after 70 years of Democrat control?"
-
David Pfeffer, former Santa Fe city councilor and Republican US Senate candidate.
Pfeffer predicts Lyons will be re-elected and says he is "far more conservative than Heather Wilson" but thinks that congressional race will be decided more by image than by credentials. He also says it's "way too early" for him to consider seeking future political office.
"I'm hopeful that Patricia Madrid will win. I think people have finally stopped being fooled by the Bush administration and are going to vote for change in that district."
-
Santa Fe Mayor David Coss.
Coss predicts Democrats will win most statewide positions but says the land commissioner race will likely be decided by voter turnout along party lines.
"I think that the congressional race [between Heather Wilson and Patricia Madrid] and the land commissioner race [between Patrick Lyons and Jim Baca] will be very important to the state but also to the nation…We've been living in dark times in terms of assaults on the environment, and I would like to see whichever candidates are elected shift their focus more toward protection of our natural heritage instead of opening up every square inch of state land for oil and gas development."
-
Nicole Rosmarino
is conservation director for Forest Guardians, a Santa Fe environmental protection organization.
"The thing that's frustrating to me at the local level is that-whether I support the people running or not-there are so many unopposed races. I think it's always a great thing for democracy to have vigorous discussion at both the primary and general election levels…I've heard a lot of people express fear that people in northern New Mexico will not vote on these down-ballot races because so many local races have no competition."
-
Santa Fe City Councilor Karen Heldmeyer.
Heldmeyer has officially endorsed Gary King for attorney general and James Lewis for state treasurer because, she says, of their "impeccable ethical records."
"We have some really good Democrats-I think Tom Udall is a really good congressman and I think Gary King is going to be a really good attorney general-but looking at the rest of them you don't really know what they stand for. I think a lot of people at this point wish there were more Greens running for more of these statewide offices."
-
Rick Lass
is the former state Green Party chairman, current press secretary for PRC candidate David Bacon and co-director of Voting Matters, a local election reform organization. Lass is lobbying the Secretary of State's Office to perform an audit of the upcoming election.
"To be quite honest, there isn't that much interest in the election among our students, and that's sort of a change. There was a tremendous amount of interest on campus during the presidential election two years ago. This year is kind of a yawner for most of our students as far as I can see."
-
Richard Bank
is a professor of politics at the College of Santa Fe. Bank says the governor's race is a "foregone conclusion," which may favor Republicans in tight races with many Democrats staying home from the polls.
