Contarino

The '26 race for the Democratic nomination for governor is getting more serious. 

The veteran Democratic consultant who helped bring home two gubernatorial wins each for Governors Bill Richardson and Lujan Grisham has picked sides for next year's contest and he's going with Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman.

That word from a reliable source close to Bregman's campaign who said the addition of Dave Contarino as the chief strategist "will help level the playing field" with front-runner Deb Haaland who announced her candidacy in February.  

He added:

Contarino will work to nationalize this race and make it about who can win the general election.

Bregman is expected to announce his candidacy Thursday afternoon at an event in Las Vegas.  

Contarino is nearly legendary in state political circles, although years ago he moved to Louisville from where he practices his trade today.

He became widely known when he brought home a win for Bill Richardson in 2002 and then presided over his 2006 re-election bid to score another victory.

In addition, Contarino, 63, served as Richardson's chief of staff during his first term.

For MLG, Contarino helped engineer a hard-fought 2012 Democratic primary win for the ABQ congressional seat and then aided her 2018 and 2022 gubernatorial campaigns.

In between he has teamed with longtime Dem consultant Amanda Cooper to run a PAC financed by labor that has delivered consistent wins in state legislative races. 

In Kentucky, in 2023, he headed a PAC for the re-election bid of Gov. Andy Beshear who won a second term.

OLD TIES 

Gov. Richardson

Bregman was good friends with Big Bill who died in 2023. They shared a passion for sports and politics. 

In 2009 when Richardson's foes were dragging Contarino into the scandals surrounding the administration, attorney Bregman was at his side. 

Contarino brings deep experience to the Bregman bench including in advertising, polling, organization and overall strategy. 

His hiring is also a sign that Bregman anticipates having sufficient funds to be competitive with Haaland who has already raised $2 million. 

MLG has not endorsed any candidate. She appointed Bregman in 2023 as BernCo DA to fill a vacancy. He then went on to win election to the post last November.

She also apppointed him as chairman of her Organized Crime Commission and worked with him on crime bills that failed to get approved at the '25 legislature. 

The Governor also has close ties to Haaland and one of her top aides--Caroline Buerkle--has endorsed the former Sec. of Interior. 

Haaland's camp has signed longtime Dem consultant, Scott Forrester, as well as Dominic Gabello who was campaign manager for Lujan Grisham.

All these Dem consultants are friends so it will be interesting to watch as they try to out fox each other in what is fast becoming an entertaining primary. The stakes are high. The winner will be favored in the general election.

HUERTA FOR HAALAND

Haaland & Huerta

Haaland marched Saturday in ABQ with longtime civil rights leader Dolores Huerta, 95, at the Annual César Chávez Celebration during which Huerta endorsed Haaland, saying:

Deb Haaland is a true public servant who always places the needs of working people first. She stands strong in the face of adversity and continues to be on the front lines fighting for justice. New Mexico needs a proven leader with the courage to fight for all New Mexicans. Times are tough but we will continue to thrive alongside leaders like Deb Haaland whose work lets us remain hopeful and dedicated to creating a more fair and just New Mexico. 

Haaland and Huerta were also at Saturday's ABQ Hands Off rally held to protest Trump's policies. The event drew several thousand to Civic Plaza

MAYOR'S RACE

Reader Carrie Garcia's comments on the ABQ mayoral race Thursday drew responses from two of the city's progressive leaders. This from Oriana Sandoval of the Center for Civic Policy: 

Joe: Your reader “Carrie Garcia” mentioned the Center for Civic Policy (CCP) in your April 3 post. CCP is a 501(c)(3) organization that does not engage in political activity, including electioneering and candidate recruitment. The claim that CCP is engaged in recruiting mayoral candidates. . .is blatantly false.  

And from Andrea Serrano of Olé:  

Hi Joe, It’s interesting your reader “Carrie Garcia” wrote so confidently about OLÉ - and missed the mark completely. OLÉ is a member-based 501(c)4 organization and while it is true that we endorse candidates who: A. complete our questionnaire and B. are aligned with our values, we have not endorsed in the 2025 Mayoral race and will do so later this spring. Focusing on issues that affect workers and families, we support candidates who deliver for New Mexicans and not corporations. I invite “Carrie” to email us at info@olenm.org if she has any further questions about our process and our organization.

Meanwhile, this news lurks over the campaign:

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