Speaker Egolf and Stapleton

No one grabbed the bull by the horns at a weekend caucus of state House Dems, setting up what could be a wide open race to succeed former ABQ Rep. Sheryl Wiliam Stapleton as House Majority Floor Leader.

It was proposed that outgoing Corrales area Rep. Daymon Ely fill the position on a "temporary" basis, meaning he would hold it through the 2022 election. That proposal fell flat. Instead, members interested will campaign for the post and another meeting to pick a leader will be held in "the coming weeks."

House Dems, led by Speaker Brian Egolf, were still reeling from the Stapleton scandal as they convened Saturday afternoon at ABQ's Carpenters Hall for a nearly four hour meeting to talk about replacing Stapleton and other matters. Our Alligators reported:

---The Ely plan fizzled because it was not pushed hard enough and an ethics complaint filed against Ely by Attorney General Balderas prior to the caucus may have put a damper on his candidacy. Ely had asked State Auditor Colón to investigate the AG's settlement of a solar case in which there was no restitution for customers. Balderas then filed his complaint against attorney Ely. 

---House Majority Whip Doreen Gallegos of Las Cruces was named Acting Majority Leader and could run for the post. However, if she does she could hit a wall of opposition because her husband, Scott Scanland, is a leading lobbyist in Santa Fe and the Stapleton disgrace puts pressure on the House to name a new leader whose ties can't be questioned. State Rep. Moe Maestas who is also married to a prominent lobbyist is not seeking to replace Stapleton. Optics are a major concern right now. (We're told now that Gallegos will not seek the permanent position.)

--ABQ State Rep. Miguel Garcia is the only announced contender for majority leader but is not seen having the muscle to deliver. Fellow ABQ Valley Rep. Javier Martinez, a progressive coming off a strong performance in the last legislative session, would seem a strong candidate but did not immediately make a move. Others being mentioned include Reps. Derick Lente and Georgene Louis. More hopefuls could easily emerge. (Martinez is now running, he confirmed to me in a text message.)

--Dems may have a bench for the statewide offices but the inability to pick a strong new leader right away again revealed the weakness of their legislative bench. 

In this year's race for state Senate President Pro Tem there was no leading contender and it took numerous ballots at the Dem caucus to get a winner. A similar situation could play out in the House leadership race. 

Also, the legislature no longer has strong arm leadership such as former House Speakers Lujan and Raymond Sanchez and Senator Michael Sanchez to call the shots in a crisis. Some like it that way but it did often avoid intraparty warfare.

--The position of Majority Leader has been downgraded, another reason there may have been no rush of hopefuls announcing. The House Speaker is always powerful but under Speaker Ben Lujan even more power was consolidated, leaving other House leadership slots as appendages. Lawmakers with powerful committee chairmanships are hesitant to leave them to take the majority leader post. 

PRAISING STAPLETON

Also at the caucus Reps Christine Trulillo and Patricia Roybal Caballero offered what amounted to lengthy eulogies for Stapleton. That did not sit well with all members who were still digesting the news that Stapleton stole nearly a million dollars (or more) from the ABQ Public Schools and faces possible felony charges and perhaps prison time. 

If those adoring and misplaced reminisces of Stapleton had been recorded and circulated to the public there would be outrage. Another reason why House Dems are going to have to pick a new majority leader who doesn't have any mud stains on their white robes. 

STAPLETON REACT 

Reader Carmie Toulouse was a constituent of former Rep. Stapleton who represented a large swath of ABQ's SE Heights. She writes:

Joe, I am heartsick over the allegations. They are particularly personal to me as my parents are the New Mexicans who helped Sheryl get involved in politics and informally adopted her into our family. They considered her their youngest daughter. If they were still with us today I can hear what my father would say to her and see the disappointed and sad look my mother would give her. When she initially ran for her House seat when Representative Bob Hawk retired, my daughter was her campaign manager.

I have reminded myself that these are only allegations and she must be considered innocent until she is determined guilty. However, you made the points and asked the questions I have been asking while communicating with a number of other people. I am very concerned that no one at APS, PED or the State Auditor’s office caught any of this. If even one dollar of the money she allegedly misappropriated is from a federal funding source then she is subject to not just a state indictment but also a federal one. 

In the aftermath of the state action against Stapleton it was revealed the Feds have been investigating for a year and a half the expenditure of federal grant money involving Stapleton. There's a federal grand jury involved. 

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