Joe, ABQ is an increasingly progressive town. I do agree with attorney David Buchholtz who said on KANW on Election Night that we’ve reached "a peak" of sorts with the progressives but it's a very high one. The fact that a a Democratic candidate with as much baggage as Idalia Lechuga Tena kept the District 8 city council race competitive in the Northeast Heights tells you something. Hard to believe but once red Tramway Blvd. is now progressive territory. 

Lechuga Tena lost District 8 to Republican Dan Champine 52 to 48 percent. 

Our analysis: Okay, she may not have government experience but the newcomer knows how to put together an organization to beat the biggest name who ran in Santa Fe. That's a start. Zamora spent some $80,000 and had a collection of who's who in endorsements but ran as a Bill Richardson-Lujan Grisham Dem centrist. In small local elections and primaries in Dem territory progressives now often dominate and there isn't much room for a middle of the road contender.

Our analysis: The progressives have not been able to persuade working class Hispanic voters on the westside to go with them. Conservative Dem Council Louis Sanchez represents District 1 and often caucuses with the Republicans to give them a majority on the council. 

Jeff Hoehn

Nichole Rogers

City politics isn't quite over for 2023. BernCo Clerk Linda Stover has set the schedule for the run-off election in City Council District 6 featuring Nichole Rogers and

Jeff Hoehn. 

ABQ voters must be registered in District 6 to be eligible to vote. As for the race, Rogers has been a favorite from the start and after taking 40 percent to Hoehn's 32 percent on Election Day she remains so. The remainder went to two other candidates. 

We asked one of of our Alligators keeping watch on the race for this first analysis of the run-off campaign:

Hoehn noted on his website November 3 that he did not support the negative messaging that the HELP ABQ PAC had made against Rogers, but since the PAC is independent of his campaign there is nothing he can do about. He continues to reference himself as a "progressive Democrat" who "is not in the pocket" of developers despite the Republican dominated PAC spending heavily for him.

Heinrich's winners

US Sen. Martin Heinrich was once again a prolific endorser this election cycle, giving the nod to 16 candidates across the state. Ten of them were successful making for a win percentage of about 62 percent. 

But on some big races Heinrich took some hits.

His biggest loss was the aforementioned defeat of Santa Fe establishment candidate Geno Zamora who was beaten by the impressive grassroots campaign of Alma Castro. 

Heinrich was dealt another blow in the high profile Las Cruces mayoral race where he endorsed Kassandra Gandara, a social worker, Las Cruces city councilor and wife of Dem state Sen. Bill Soules. She was aced by veteran firefighter and city administrator Eric Enriquez. 

The First Endorser also fell short with Dem Abby Foster, his pick for ABQ City Council District 4 where incumbent Republican Brook Bassan hung on by a thread to take the win, 51 to 49, in what lived up to its billing as a toss-up race. 

Heinrich did score with his endorsement of Rolanda Tome-Warito, a Democrat who ousted longtime ABQ westside Republican APS School Board member Peggy Muller-Aragon. 

His pick for ABQ City Council District 2 was Joaquin Baca who took the victory in a three way race. 

The other endorsements Heinrich made were mostly in small towns and lower level races for Soil and Water Conservation boards, even though his campaign spun that all 11 of his successful picks were "big wins." 

Commentator Michael Hays of Las Cruces weighs in with more on the mayoral battle there:

Want more? Join me on 96.3 KKOB radio at 5 p.m. as we kick the political football around with TJ Trout. . . 

Thanks to Tesuque Pueblo for opening their homes to us for their annual Feast Day of San Diego on Sunday. Great food and great people. 

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