Bob Perls

Some 330,000 unaffiliated voters in New Mexico will now be able to participate in primary elections without first having to change their voter registration to a major party. Senate Bill 16 is a measure that would create so-called semi-open primaries in the state.

To flesh out the history of this change and the surge it will mean in eligible voters for partisan elections, we spoke with former state Rep, Bob Perls of Corrales, the founder of the state movement for open primaries:

Joe, it’s been a 10 year effort and thousands of hours of volunteer time to pass an open primaries bill culminating in the passage of SB16. I want to thank the NM Open Elections Board members who kept the momentum alive and the state legislators who sponsored various versions of the legislation over the last decade. Then in 2022 NM Open Elections had some key local supporters write some sizable checks that allowed me and our Board to hire our first paid Executive Director, Sila Avcil, who took us to the next level. Nothing is more gratifying to realize that I helped enfranchise over 300,000 voters in NM to be able to exercise their fundamental human right to vote in a public election. 

It will be fun to watch in 2026 how the major parties reach out to independent voters and the party that does it best will reap the rewards. The bill takes effect in the 2026 election cycle. As a group, our position is that it does not benefit one party over another and nationally that seems to be the case. 

I would hope candidates that might not get the full-throated endorsement of the major parties might be encouraged to run realizing they can run a primary in either party targeting independent voters who are not going to care if the candidate espouses typical party orthodoxy.  

There is good data that independents are diverse, but tend to reflect the districts they come from. In other words they are not going to be a lot further left or right than their own neighborhoods.

As a whole, they don’t want to be told who to vote for and don’t want the binary choice of the parties which have tracked further left and right over the years. They want to hear about the issues and concrete solutions. Which party will do that for them? It could lead to more moderate candidates getting elected, but there is no clear evidence of that. 

The biggest change will simply be having 330,000 new potential voters--23 percent of all registered voters-eligible to vote in state primaries. Given that 50% of veterans and young people are registered as independent voters nationally and 30% + of Native American communities, there is a chance those groups could have an impact on primary elections. The main thing is that their constitutional right to vote is finally protected. 

Thanks, Bob. Just how many of the independents will decide to vote in the primaries is uncertain. Turnout for independents is usually lower than for voters in the major parties. We'll start to get some answers next year beginning with the June primary where candidates will compete for an open gubernatorial seat and many other offices. 

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Sen. Lujan

He spent a total of $7.5 million in winning the seat over Republican Mark Ronchetti in 2020 who spent just $3.5 million. But Lujan only won that race by 6.1 percent, a performance that brought criticism of how the campaign was managed. 

While Lujan, 52, has not yet officially announced his plans, Republicans are not beating down the door to get into the race. None has announced and there are no prominent names circulating.

The fact that the last Republican elected to the Senate here was Sen. Pete Domenici when he was re-elected in 2002 is not helping to lure ambitious Republicans into the contest. 

So what would happen in the unlikely event of Lujan deciding not to run for another term? Certainly Republicans would emerge but the Democrats would have no problem getting a top tier candidate. 

The most obvious would be ABQ Dem Rep. Melanie Stansbury although her left-leaning politics might be a hurdle. However, consultants say votes from ABQ, Santa Fe and Las Cruces would be more than enough for her to keep the seat in the D column. 

Another possible is Attorney General Raul Torres but generally the edge goes to those already in the House. Think Lujan and Heinrich who moved from the House to Senate seats. 

IN THE WINGS

Rep. Stansbury

But Stansbury is actually quite serious about what is happening in DC as she takes to heart a major role in oversight of the administration:

Rep Stansbury, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency, led Committee Democrats in introducing a Resolution of Inquiry to investigate DOGE’s unsanctioned use of government data and artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on American privacy and national security. “The American people demand to know why Elon Musk and DOGE are hacking our private and sensitive data and what they are doing with it. This includes Social Security, IRS, Treasury, and other highly sensitive data, I have dropped an oversight resolution demanding the Administration provide answers about what it is doing with our data and how it is using Artificial Intelligence to data mine our systems. It is our duty to fight for answers and get to the bottom of what exactly DOGE and Musk are doing. . ."

Not that she will get much of an answer from the administration but her determination to take a lead role in the nitty gritty of urgently needed oversight, not only protesting with a sign, puts her in the league of possible future US Senators. (Not that Ben Ray is going anywhere. Not that we know of.)

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Contarino

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

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

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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