The leading progressive election PAC in the state is back in business and conservative legislative Democrats are on notice. 

Better Future For NM, a committee that relies heavily on labor and environmental funding to the tune of hundreds of thousands, if not more, reveals in a fund-raising letter the key races they will be targeting in the June 4 primary in an effort to keep progressive power intact at the Roundhouse and break up a small group of conservative Dems who sometimes put sand in the the progressives' gas tank. 

As in the past, longtime NM consultant Amanda Cooper is heading up the effort along with veteran consultant Nick Voges, a NMSU product, and Jim Gollin of Santa Fe, a "former investment fund executive and current Democratic donor who is active in a number of left-of-center political causes." Former Gov. Richardson chief of staff and political consultant Dave Contarino has worked a number of election cycles with Cooper. 

The PAC fund-raising letter explains the fine details of their strategy and comes on the heels of a legislative session where 11 conservative and centrist House Dems bolted from their party to kill the progressive-backed Paid Family Medical Leave Act. Abortion rights also played a role in who got a target on their back. 

Rep. Patty Lundstrom of Gallup, the putative leader of the conservative Dems and a thorn in the side of House Speaker Javier Martinez, is the most well-known and powerful Dem who will now have a progressive fight on her hands. 

Somewhat surprising is ABQ NE Heights Dem Marian Matthews making the list. She represents an area that used to be solid GOP and has kept a conservative edge in representing the district in order to keep the seat. But the progressive PAC believes she has strayed too far and will work to take her out after two terms. 

The PAC says its heavy spending will replicate what the wealthy energy industry will be doing to protect their conservative presence in Santa Fe. Soon the money will be rolling out from both sides. For now let's get to that PAC strategy letter exclusively for our blog readers and which we have edited for length. 

THE LETTER

Dear. . . 

While the Democratic majority is expected to hold in November, the June primary will decide whether our state can continue to advance on progressive issues from reproductive rights, climate and clean energy, payday lending reform, early childhood education, modernizing the legislature, paid family and medical leave, LGBTQ+ rights and more. 

Recall that the effort to give New Mexican workers a right to paid family and medical leave failed this year by one vote, as 11 centrist and conservative Democrats defected to join the Republicans. We have some of the best reproductive rights in the nation, but the reproductive health majority is a slim 3 votes. Similarly, there is a razor thin majority in favor of continuing the transition to a clean energy future. 

As in the last cycle, there is a well-funded, organized effort by oil and gas, conservative, corporate, and Republican funders to unseat our incumbent progressive champions and install “Democrats in Name Only” in numerous open seats. Our aim is to counter that threat with broad-based support for the champions of climate, women, early childhood education and more.

In addition to protecting and advancing policy goals, we seek a state legislature that is more reflective of our New Mexican citizenry. For example, only 26% of our Senators are women, though over half of our voters are female. And while our state is roughly 11% Native American, only 6% of our legislators are Native American.

It is critical for us all to support both the groups and the candidates. The limit per individual is $5,500 per race, and contributions are part of the public record. 

KEY SENATE PRIMARIES

Heather Berghmans (SD 15) ABQ

Replace disgraced incumbent Democrat Ivey-Soto. Heather is an ABQ native and has worked as a policy analyst as well as a fundraiser for the NM Democratic State House Caucus. At 35, she would be the youngest woman serving in the Senate, but already has a long history working in the NM legislature under Speakers Egolf and Martinez. She is challenging disgraced incumbent Daniel Ivey Soto, who has faced multiple credible claims of sexual harassment, bullying, and ethics violations, which resulted in his removal from leadership positions. But only the voters can remove him from the Senate. Ivey-Soto is supported by high-profile corporate lobbyists and special interests, voted against paid family and medical leave, refused to support the legalization of abortion after the fall of Roe v. Wade, and has been disavowed by the Democratic Party of New Mexico. This is a safe Democratic seat.

Angel Charley (SD 30) - Cibola, McKinley, Socorro & Valencia - open/pickup seat. 

Angel is a Native American (Laguna/Zuni/Diné) woman and first time candidate running for the Senate in rural and tribal west/central New Mexico. Angel is the former Executive Director of the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women, and now heads a national native group. Redistricting dramatically changed this district so that a Native American can win and hold this seat. She is running against former State Senator Clemente Sanchez in the Primary. Clemente Sanchez was a bad vote on key issues like abortion, education, healthcare and workers when he was defeated in 2020. There is no Republican in this race, so the primary winner heads straight to the Senate.

KEY HOUSE PRIMARIES

Rep. Lundstrom

Christopher Hudson (HD 9) - McKinley County - Replace a conservative Democrat.  

Christopher is Navajo, born and raised in HD 9, and has worked on the McKinley county health council to invest in better health outcomes for his community. HD 9 is a largely Native American District, but has long been represented by conservative Democrat Rep. Patty Lundstrom. Lundstrom has worked with Republicans and oil and gas funders to recruit and fund conservative candidates to primary progressive incumbent champions, primarily targeting young women of color. She is anti-repro health, an entrenched ally of the extractive industries, payday lenders, and other corporate interests. Conservative Democrat Arval McCabe is also running. House District 9 is primarily Navajo, and includes a significant portion of Gallup. There is no Republican running in this district.

Rep. Yanira Gurrola (HD 16) - ABQ Westside - Protect. 

This is a key incumbent protection seat. Yanira is an immigrant and engineer who has worked in education, first as a math teacher active in the teacher’s union, and now works as a national consultant in bilingual education. Yanira is being challenged by conservative Democrat Marsella Duarte, who was recruited and is supported by high-profile corporate lobbyists. There is no Republican running in this district.

Rep. Susan Herrera (HD 41) - Rio Arriba, Sandoval, Santa Fe, Taos - Protect. 

This is a key incumbent protection seat. Susan has an impressive background as the former ED of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and President and CEO of the Los Alamos National Laboratory Foundation. Under her leadership, the foundation's endowment grew from $8 million to $80 million, providing key scholarships to New Mexican students. While in the House, Susan led the fight to end predatory lending in New Mexico, worked to modernize New Mexico’s antiquated water laws, and supported rural communities. She faces a stiff challenge from primary challenger Margaret Campos, who will be well-funded by oil and gas and other special interests. There is no Republican running in this district.

Michelle “Paulene” Abeyta (HD 69) - Bernalillo, Cibola, McKinley, San Juan, Socorro, Valencia - Replace conservative Democrat. 

Paulene is a member of the Navajo Nation and is from To’hajiilee, NM. Paulene serves on the To’hajiilee Community School Board of Education and the National Native American Bar Association Board. She is an attorney and first-time candidate for the Legislature. This largely Native American district covers sparsely populated Western, Central and even Southern NM. She is running against conservative incumbent Democrat Harry Garcia. Garcia has repeatedly voted against reproductive rights, advancing climate and clean energy policies, capping predatory lending, and expanding paid family and medical leave. This is a Democratic Primary only. 

Greg Seeley (HD 27) - ABQ NE Heights - Replace conservative Democrat. 

Rep. Matthews

Greg is a retired US Air Force Veteran, who most recently served as the Federal Funding Coordinator for the City of Albuquerque and previously worked as a legislative aide for both Rep. Deb Haaland and Sen. Ben Ray Lujan. Greg has a long history as a champion for reproductive health, climate and clean energy, and paid family and medical leave. Greg is running against incumbent Representative Marian Matthews, a conservative Democrat who was instrumental in killing family and medical leave legislation over the past two legislative sessions. This will be a highly competitive general election race as well.

Anita Gonzales (HD 70) - San Miguel and Torrance - Replace conservative Democrat. 

Anita is challenging conservative Democrat Ambrose Castellano for the third time after losing by less than 80 votes in both the 2020 and 2022 primaries, which were impacted by COVID and then the wildfires. She is the Deputy Director for NM MESA which prepares middle and high school students for careers in STEM related fields, and serves on the board of the Sierra Club Rio Grande Chapter. Incumbent Rep. Castellano is anti-choice, votes against climate change/enviro legislation, against gun safety bills, and against protecting consumers from payday loan companies. He is almost exclusively funded by corporate interests--especially the state's powerful oil and gas industry. This year, Anita's campaign is being professionally managed to meet strong fundraising and field goals and is supported by numerous community organizations. This is a Democratic Primary race only.

Of course, there are still more primary races, but we have focused this list on races where there is a strong contrast between conservatives and progressives, or where our allied partners have prioritized, and where our candidate has a meaningful chance of winning both the primary and the general election.

Sincerely, Jim Gollin, Amanda Cooper, and Nick Voges 

That's quite the roadmap for the progressives and with major league dollars behind it. Conservatives can be grateful that the price of oil remains strong so they have the funds to keep up. Now they need a strategy.

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