Arnold-Jones, shown here webcasting a legislative committee meeting earlier this year. (Photo by Heath Haussamen)
Saying she is “tired of New Mexico being known for graft, corruption and poor service,” state Rep. Janice Arnold-Jones, R-Albuquerque, formally launched her bid for governor on Sunday.
“In Santa Fe, we are experiencing a moral train wreck, and it is costing the taxpayers money and confidence,” the Albuquerque Journal quoted Arnold-Jones as saying.
In addition to stressing ethics, Arnold-Jones said she’ll focus her campaign on connectivity and education, according to the New Mexico Independent.
The legislator confirmed to me a month ago that she was running. This weekend’s formal announcement was made before about 200 people in Albuquerque, the Independent reported.
Arnold-Jones, who has been a state lawmaker since 2003, is best known for leading the charge earlier this year to force webcasting on the Legislature. For her work on that issue, the Santa Fe Reporter nicknamed her “Lady Sunlight.”
Arnold-Jones has plans to further expand government transparency. From the Independent:
“She said she’d pressure the Legislature to open its meetings to the public, to implement the ‘wide use of technology’ to provide access across the state, real-time tracking of bills, and ‘the full and complete vetting of legislation, including detailed cost analysis and revenue source expectations.’
“And, she said, if she’s elected governor her cabinet meetings will be ‘accessible to the public on a regular basis.’”
Arnold-Jones, according to the Independent, also proposed “mandatory ethics training for state employees, whistleblower protections and high standards to reduce both the appearance and reality of conflicts of interest.” She didn’t mention a proposal that’s popular among many Democrats — creating an independent state ethics commission.
Other issues
Arnold-Jones didn’t go into specifics on what she would do to improve education, but, according to the Independent, “said it’s about attitude, expectations, and ‘believing in ourselves.’”
According to the Journal, she also talked about “relaxing regulation and tax policy to draw more business to the state.” The Independent said she also stressed “connectivity,” which the news organization explained as “encompassing renewable energy, smart-grid technology and communications infrastructure.”
On the GOP side, Arnold-Jones joins Doña Ana County District Attorney Susana Martinez in the race. Former state GOP chairman Allen Weh has formed an exploratory committee and is calling himself a “likely candidate,” and public relations professional Doug Turner appears to be about to formally jump into the race.
In addition, former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson says she’s thinking about running.
On the Democratic side, Lt. Gov. Diane Denish is the only declared candidate, though Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez says he’s formed an exploratory committee.
Will vote to repeal death penalty be an issue?
There’s one issue on which some Republicans are already hitting Arnold-Jones. She was one of a handful of Republican lawmakers who voted for the successful push to repeal the death penalty in New Mexico. Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White, who has started a movement to try to repeal the death penalty repeal, wrote in an e-mail that he encourages Republicans thinking about Arnold-Jones’ candidacy to consider that fact.
“Soft-on-crime legislators should be voted out of office, not promoted,” White said. “Considering, in a recent poll, eighty-six percent of all Republicans in New Mexico support the death penalty for murderers, Janice’s campaign will be a very hard sell.”
Arnold-Jones did not immediately respond to a request for comment on White’s statement. White said he is not supporting any candidate for governor at this time.