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Tuesday, September 07, 2021

Potential Herrell Foes Emerge As Redistricting Draws Near; Two Dems Eye Southern Challenge, Plus: Questioning Candelaria; State Senate's Elder Statesman Goes Public Over Colleague’s Repeated Disruptions 

Sen. Hemphill
Just how the southern congressional district will look following redistricting may have held back possible Dem contenders vying for the right to go up against GOP Congresswoman Yvette Herrell next year. But that appears ready to change with about three months before the legislature draws new district lines. 

Two progressive Dems are emerging as possible candidates as the Dems prepare for another battle with  first term Rep. Herrell in a race that will have significant national consequences. The Dems US House majority is a mere 8 seats so keeping the southern NM district--one of the few swing seats--is a major priority for both parties. 

Two years ago when freshman Dem Rep. Xochitl Torres Small lost to Herrell the fight for the district was the most expensive battle in the nation. Really. An incredible $37.3 million was spent when the district flipped back to the R's, much of that in "dark money" going to both sides. 

The 2022 battle probably won't see quite that tsunami of cash pouring in but it certainly won't be cheap and the purveyors of 30 second TV spots won't have to worry about going broke. 

As for what D's might challenge Herrell, insiders watching the action point to state Senator Siah Correa Hemphill, a special education teacher and psychologist from Silver City who was only elected to the Senate in 2020 but is said to be busy gathering data on the congressional seat. 

Another possible is Las Cruces City Councilor Gabe Vasquez, a communications specialist and a former aide to Sen. Martin Heinrich, who after one term on the council decided not to seek reelection, signaling that he may be eyeing a congressional run.

Herrell is taking the threats seriously and had nearly $700,000 in her campaign account at the end of June.  That has now probably hit $1 million. She can count on more as her support of former President Trump pays off on the fundraising circuit. 

A primary between Hemphill and Vasquez is difficult to handicap until the new district is approved but both are seen as strong contenders. (Herrell is not expected to draw a primary challenge.)

Councilor Vasquez
Hemphill crushed appointed conservative Dem state Senator Gabe Ramos in the June 2020 primary by 68 to 32 percent. She went on to win a cliffhanger--51 to 49%--against her Republican rival in the swing seat. 

Hemphill's defeat of Ramos was a major score for state progressives and she was rewarded with a seat on the powerful Senate Finance Committee. 

Dem women have led the charge in reshaping the state’s politics to a more progressive bent and Hemphill fits the mold for the congressional seat. 

Vazquez, 36, is an ardent environmentalist like his patron, Senator Heinrich. An El Paso native, who is a Spanish speaker, Vazsquez used his council term to reach out to his district's sizable low income and Hispanic population. He finishes his term popular and with a base in Las Cruces from which he can launch a congressional candidacy. 

The redistricting session is expected in early December. With two solid possible nominees the pressure on the majority Dems in the legislature to make the district more favorable for them can only grow. 

QUESTIONING CANDELARIA

The antics of Dem state Senator Jacob Candelaria, have jarred the normally staid Senate and its leadership has been unable to curb his enthusiasm for disruption. Dem State Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino, 79, goes on the record in chastising his much younger colleague: 

OMG! This young man has lost all perspective. He has filed a formal charge of discrimination because Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart changed his seat in the Senate chamber! And he refuses mediation. His sense of entitlement knows no bounds. In context, Mimi isn't retaliating, she is simply recognizing that because he voluntarily resigned from the Democratic caucus, it makes no sense to be sitting in the very middle of that caucus. He needs to realize his actions have consequences.

Sen. Ortiz y Pino
And ABQ attorney Jeff Baker comes with this:

What’s up with Candelaria? He seems to be self-sabotaging. Does he have any influence in the Senate? Given the D majority, does his vote even matter? Threatening to sue Secretary of Health Tracie Collins, his on-camera meltdown with the State Police and removing himself as a voting member of interim committees – does he have a friend/mentor in the Roundhouse who can organize an intervention? Watching someone melt down in public is not entertaining. Perhaps the Senate leadership is willing to step back and watch him implode. But the problem is if he hurts someone other than himself.

Candelaria apologized for his behavior when state police were sent to his ABQ westside home to investigate his complaint that he had been receiving profanity laced phone calls. 

In addition to the Senate leadership Candelaria has also turned on MLG who he now regularly criticizes after having a warm relationship with her. And he called Sen. Joe Cervantes a liar on social media over a legislative disagreement between the pair. 

A Princeton graduate and ABQ attorney, Candelaria has intellectual firepower but his aim is off. La Politica has a way of straightening out such misfires.

Candelaria came with this response Tuesday:

CANDELARIA RESPONDS 

Candelaria Tuesday came with this response to the reference that he received profanity laced phone calls at his home: 

The state police were called to my home for a death threat. . .You have published. . . that my family received "profanity laden" phone calls with respect to this incident, or other factual allegations to that effect. This factual allegation is demonstrably false. I attach for your reference a copy of the District Court order granting a three year injunction against the white supremicist that made one of the death threats against my husband and I in October/November of last year. . .You have a right to have your own opinions which lead you to dismiss and mimimize a death threat, motivated by racial and homophobic hate, against my family. You do not however have the right to publish false or deliberately misleading factual allegations about the events of that evening. 

The ABQ Journal reported that Candelaria received "profanity laced threatening" phone calls. A link to the court order Candelaria mentions is here

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