Lawmakers Jeff, Lovejoy heap praise on Martinez

Though many Democratic lawmakers aren’t impressed with the job Gov. Susana Martinez has done thus far, two Democratic state lawmakers who represent an area that’s often forgotten have a different take.

The praise for the Republican governor comes from Sen. Lynda Lovejoy and Rep. Sandra Jeff, Democratic lawmakers from Crownpoint who are both Navajo. It follows the appointment by Martinez of a Navajo to be the state’s Indian affairs secretary, and a legislative session in which both found some common ground with the governor.

“I do admire her willingness and her openness and her accessibility,” Lovejoy said in a recent interview. “I’m not going to say Navajos are going to change their party affiliation and vote for her. It’s too soon. But it’s a good start for her, in my point of view.”

Jeff heaped even more praise on Martinez, saying she’s done such a good job of reaching out that some Navajo Democrats are considering becoming Republicans.

“There’s a common ground, and they see it in her,” Jeff said of Martinez.

Some other Democratic lawmakers who represent the area in and around the Navajo Nation could not be reached for comment.

But if other Navajos share the high opinion of Martinez expressed by Jeff and Lovejoy, as Jeff claims they do, that could be politically significant. Jeff compared Martinez’s potential for winning Democratic votes on the Navajo Nation as governor to her past re-election victories as Doña Ana County’s district attorney – victories in a predominantly Democratic county that required bipartisan support.

Picking a Navajo to head Indian Affairs

Jeff and Lovejoy said Martinez’s pick of Arthur P. Allison, a Republican, to head the Indian Affairs Department was a good one. Allison is the first Navajo to head the department, according to the Navajo Times.

Jeff said she lobbied Martinez to select a Navajo – and the governor listened.

“I know that he will do the job because he is very pro-business,” Jeff said of Allison.

“To my knowledge he’s a very mature individual,” Lovejoy said. “He’s got a lot of experience in planning and development. He has a good education.”

Allison owns 5 Star Security Inc., a Farmington-area security business. He’s chairman of the board of Diné Development Corp., through which the Navajo Nation helps businesses. He was economic development director for the Navajo Nation from 1995 to 1998.

Martinez spokesman Scott Darnell said the governor interviewed candidates from the state’s pueblos and the Navajo reservation, and ultimately believed that Allison is “a competent, forward-thinking leader whose business acumen will help with economic development and job creation in the Native American community.”

‘She was very approachable’

It’s not just the selection of Allison that has the lawmakers pleased with Martinez. Both liked some – but not all – of the policy initiatives Martinez pushed during the legislative session.

Lovejoy said she agreed with Martinez’s pushes to expand a DNA collection law and reform education. She didn’t agree with the governor’s unsuccessful push to end the state’s practice of allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses.

Lovejoy’s own legislation had mixed success with Martinez. The governor vetoed her bill that would have changed the way escrow payments are determined for cigarette manufacturers who don’t participate in the tobacco settlement, but signed her Native American suicide prevention bill at a public ceremony in Shiprock.

Darnell said the governor is committed to serving the interests of Native Americans and “was honored to sign the Native American Suicide Prevention Act at Shiprock High School, where she was able to personally communicate to hundreds of Native American young people that their lives were valuable and their futures limitless.”

“Suicide stems so often from despair, hopelessness, or substance abuse, all of which can be combated by a community that is constantly working together to support and nurture the young people around them in a positive way,” he said.

Lovejoy liked what she saw from the governor at the Shiprock news conference.

“When I observed her at Shiprock, she was very approachable,” Lovejoy said, adding that she admires much about the governor’s agenda and her “philosophy of what she needs to do as a governor.”

Jeff gained a lot of attention during the session for supporting Martinez’s push to outlaw driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants. In fact, it earned her the ire of many of her Democratic colleagues.

Jeff said she’s fed up with the leadership in her own party, but said she’s not among those who are thinking about becoming Republicans. Still, she said, she plans to be a Martinez ally, saying she’s been impressed with Martinez’s desire to work with Democrats as well as Republicans.

“We can work together,” Jeff said. “We’re not the ones who spend, spend, spend, spend, spend. We’re trying to fix the budget.”

‘Deep respect’

Darnell said Martinez “has deep respect” for Jeff and Lovejoy and “fervently believes that while public officials may hold differing viewpoints from one another on important matters, this should not impede their ability to work together, get along, and effectively represent New Mexicans.”

“In fact, to this point, the governor has aimed to be up front with lawmakers about where she stands on the critical issues facing New Mexico and work with them wherever she can to achieve mutual goals,” Darnell said.

This article has been updated for clarity.