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| Richardson, Cervantes and Munoz |
Maybe that master negotiator Big Bill can help? Our Alligators were at the iconic Santa Fe Bull Ring Monday night and snapped quite the pic posted here, showing the former Governor deep in conversation with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Joe Cervantes and Senate Finance Committee Chair George Munoz who represents Indian Country in McKinley County. Richardson is fresh back from a successful negotiating journey to Mynammar where he freed a jailed America journalist so why not try to free the hostage state senate?
Cervantes is a key redistricting player who veered away from a plan favored by the tribes and pueblos, an important Democratic Party constituency. Instead his committee came with a substitute bill that would spare GOP Senators Greg Baca and Joshua Sanchez from being paired in the same district.
It's quite a sight to see Dem Senate heavies Cervantes and Mimi Stewart trying to saving the necks of Republicans while the Native leaders claim its being done at their expense.
Senator Majority Leader Peter Wirth met all day Monday with tribal leaders hoping to break the impasse. But noone sells short the power of a bull session at the Bull Ring to craft a deal. Something should break the impasse soon. (The House has already approved a redistricting of that chamber and now waits on the Senate.)
BERNCO MOVIDA?
A last minute move to alter the proposed redistricting maps for the five Bernalillo County Commission seats has progressive Dems up in arms and working to head off a revision as the commission meets later today to take a vote.
Progressives see the long arm of westside developer Santolina at work. They report Santolina reps have been lobbying the Westside Coalition of Neighborhoods to go along with a map change that would make the commission more friendly to the company whose plan to build a development of 90,000 on the county's far westside has stalled out in recent years. The development has drawn fire from enviro Dems.
Alarm grew when word spread that former GOP state senator and demographer Rod Adair of Roswell/Santa Fe was apparently called in to rework the maps. Adair's work on the Sandoval County Commission redistricting has already caused an uproar from Native American groups who say they are being pushed aside in favor of Republicans.
The proposed BernCo Commission maps make little change to the districts. What the "Santolina" map would do is make an entire Westside district, west of the Rio Grande. That would cut out the liberal North Valley from District One, the seat of outgoing Dem Commissioner Debbie O'Malley. That seat is up for election next year and a sole Westside district would be more to the developer's liking. O'Malley has been a hardcore Santolina foe.
Santolina has a long record of involvement in local politics, including opposing Mayor Tim Keller when he first sought election in 2017.
The commission meets at 5 p.m. today.
BACK IN SANTA FE. . .
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| Fighting Irishman |
Former Dem and now Independent ABQ Senator Jacob Candelaria has already announced he will not seek re-election. One question hanging is whether the Candelaria district will include the home of westside Dem State Rep. Moe Maestas who has his eye on that senate seat.
One of the Alligators tracking the northern congressional action doesn't think Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez would have a problem if former state Rep. Joseph Sanchez challenged her for the Dem nomination in the new district:
Sanchez ran a lousy campaign when he ran against her in 2020. Leger Fernandez does well with Navajos, Progressives in Los Alamos and Santa Fe. That’s pretty much enough to win the Democratic primary in the new district. Unfortunately for her, the Legislature doesn’t show much consideration for freshman congresspersons and they gave her a new district she is less than pleased with.
READER TAKE
Reader George Mozurkewich had this redistricting take:
Joe, I disagree with your assessment that Senator Cervantes and Representative Louis's redistricting plan "hits just the right notes." While redistricting is a fraught and inherently political activity, there is one principle which can be clearly identified and implemented; namely, redistricting boundaries should follow county and municipal lines whenever possible. Unnecessarily breaking up Albuquerque violates that principle to satisfy a crass political objective. One might say it 'crosses a line.' Furthermore, it is not an argument in favor of the new plan that it makes "three districts that each are very much like New Mexico as a whole," as stated by Senator Ortiz y Pino. If that were a legitimate goal, we should vote for our three representatives at large. Districts should reflect the diversity of New Mexico.
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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2021
(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2021