Campos, Tinsley confirm congressional runs

State Rep. Jose Campos, D-Santa Rosa, and GOP restaurant-chain owner and rancher Ed Tinsley are both confirming that they are running for the Second Congressional District seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M.

Campos confirmed this morning in an e-mail that he’s running.

“I am running for congressman in N.M.’s Second Congressional District because I believe I have both the skills and the experience necessary to make a positive difference in Southern New Mexico,” Campos said. “…I am the only candidate for this congressional seat that fully understands the intricacies of county, city and state government. I’ve been a county commissioner, and I am currently a mayor and a state representative.”

Tinsley made his announcement in a news release this morning.

“I understand what makes our district so near and dear in the hearts of Southern New Mexicans,” Tinsley said, “from the oil and gas fields of the southeast, to the tourism and hospitality industry of the mountains, to Las Cruces – one of the fastest-growing cities in the southwest, to the rich farming lands in the lower Rio Grande Valley, to our forest lands throughout the district, and ranching. I would consider it an honor to represent every corner of this district.”

Their announcements add to the news about the congressional race that is planned for this week. Former Lea County Commissioner Harry Teague, a Democrat who has already confirmed his run, will formally announce it Thursday at 5 p.m. in Hobbs. And state Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, is expected to enter the race in the coming days. He has confirmed only that his decision has been made and that he would announce it “immediately” following Tuesday’s municipal election in Las Cruces.

I’ve been unable to reach Cervantes this week for comment.

On the Democratic side, Al Kissling, Doña Ana County Commissioner Bill McCamley and Roswell businessman and former teacher Frank McKinnon are also running.

No other Republican has formally entered the race, but former Bernalillo County GOP Executive Director Bob Cornelius announced Saturday that has formed an exploratory committee “with the intent” to run. Sierra County Republican Party Chair C. Earl Greer and Aubrey L. Dunn Jr. are expected to make final decisions soon, and others are also considering the race.

Campos says he has experience to lead

Campos, who has been a lawmaker for four years and Santa Rosa’s mayor for almost 10, vowed as a congressman “to continue to support local governments and small businesses to keep New Mexico moving forward.” He said his goals include developing “a strong local and national economy to produce the jobs of tomorrow,” to create a “fair playing field” for the nation’s agriculture industry to compete with foreign farmers, and to promote the United States as a “world leader in renewable energy and energy-efficient products and clean water and air quality products for worldwide exportation.”

Campos said he’s been in business for 23 years. He said he has “the proven capability to improve the quality of life for our citizens by supporting local governments and business opportunities, and the potential to lead this country to be strong economically, militarily, environmentally and education-wise.”

“I know firsthand what it takes to run a successful small business on Main Street, providing jobs and contributing to the quality of life in a community,” he said. “A good congressman must not just have read about it, but must have experienced the struggle to create employment and turn a profit.”

As a Guadalupe County commissioner, Campos said he helped develop a new financial mechanism to ensure the county could better care for its roads. He said he also pushed, successfully, for the computerization of county government and helped implement policies and procedures for the transition.

As mayor, he took credit for helping create a city that is more “customer-oriented, business-friendly and attuned and accountable to our citizens.”

“We have new parks, new and expanded recreation programs for youth, adults and seniors, a new downtown plaza, new roads, new water and water reuse infrastructure, new water supplies, a new city hall, and coming soon, a new convention center and a new museum,” he said. “What was only 10 years ago a slowly dying town is now a model community for economic development, as recognized by the N.M. Economic Development Department.”

Campos also cited several legislative accomplishments of which he is proud, including his co-sponsorship of the bill that created a board that helped save Cannon Air Force Base. He also cited his sponsorship of a bill that created the state’s Renewable Energy Transmission Authority.

Tinsley says he knows how to get things done in D.C.

Tinsley said his experience as the former chairman of the National Restaurant Association – he owns the K-Bob’s chain of restaurants – gave him “unparalleled experience in sitting down at the negotiating table with lawmakers to make sure the voices of my constituents were heard, from the small business owner to the working mother in our restaurants.” He plans a formal announcement for Nov. 19, but did not provide details.

Tinsley has been involved with the association for 10 years but became more active after he lost to Pearce in the 2002 primary. That experience was the focus of his news release.

“(The restaurant association) experience was extremely rewarding as I became close friends with restaurant operators across the country who are living proof that the American dream is alive and well, but not without challenges,” Tinsley said. “It helped me understand more about what it takes to get things done in Washington, or sometimes how to keep things from getting done in Washington. I did learn that if you are not at the table in Washington, you will soon be on their menu.”

Tinsley’s wife Meredith said Tinsley believes that, after losing in 2002, “when one door closed, another one opened with the leadership role for the National Restaurant Association.”

“Maybe it was luck, fate or God’s plan, but I feel now it was just what he needed to gain experience on how to get things done in Washington,” she said. “I know how much our ranch means to Ed, how much his family means to him, and also how important the issues of southern New Mexico and our country are to him. It is hard to think about loaning him out to do this, but I know his passion and love for the process, his deep understanding of the diversity of issues in our district as he lives them each day in our own businesses, and I know he will make a great congressman.”

The two live on and operate a cattle ranch north of Capitan in Lincoln County. The ranch has been in the Tinsley family for 50 years, and Ed and Meredith Tinsley have owned it for 25.

One of the criticisms Tinsley faced in 2002, and is already facing in this campaign, is over the fact that he owns a home in Santa Fe. Many accuse him of spending most of his time living there, but Tinsley said it isn’t true.

Tinsley said he owns a second home and headquarters his restaurant business in Santa Fe in part because of the restaurant-industry talent that exists there. He lives in a community with a golf course because he wanted to have access to such recreation.

But he said he has filed his tax returns and voted in Lincoln County for the last eight to 10 years and most of his business interests – in ranching, wildlife and gaming, oil and gas, commercial real estate and a development being built on the ranch – are headquartered at the ranch.

He said he has spent 60 percent of the last 120 days at the ranch, 20 percent in Santa Fe and 20 percent traveling.

Tinsley said his campaign platform will include immigration reform and border security, health care, small-business and family tax relief and the safety of Americans.