Doña Ana County Commissioner Bill McCamley announced today that he’s running for the 2nd Congressional District seat currently held by Steve Pearce, R-N.M.
McCamley, a Democrat, will have to face Al Kissling in a primary to earn the right to take on Pearce next year. There’s also a possibility that other Democrats, including State Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, will enter the race.
The stars will have to align for a Democrat to take down Pearce,
McCamley said he’s up to the task.
“We need leaders in Washington who will work together to find real solutions to the problems facing
McCamley, 29, has been a commissioner since January 2005 and, in that time, has become a local powerhouse. He was elected chairman of the commission at his first meeting and quickly authored a rewrite of the county’s ethics policy.
McCamley pledged during his campaign to solve a decades-old water battle that hampered growth in the southern part of the county. A little over a month after he took office, the county and
More recently, McCamley led the charge for approval of a 1/4 percent gross receipts tax increase in
He also pushed for a local tax increase for public safety and helped reorganize the county health care financing system to make it more efficient. McCamley said such results show a focus on representing the people who elected him.
“Steve Pearce has worked hard to represent the current administration and not the people of
Kissling disappointed, but will fight
Kissling said he was disappointed to learn McCamley had jumped into the race.
“I’m running,” he said. “I heard McCamley is running. I’m sorry to hear that, because I think it dilutes the energy we need to run against Mr. Pearce.”
Kissling immediately went on the attack, calling McCamley “young and impetuous” and saying he’s up to the challenge of tough primary and general elections.
“It will be the grassroots against the politicos,” Kissling said.
Kissling, who has never held elective office, ran against Pearce in 2006 and secured just over 40 percent of the vote. He raised and spent a little more than $180,000, while Pearce raised more than $1.4 million and spent just under $1.3 million.
Pollster Sanderoff said the money is just one of several major obstacles a Democrat will have to overcome to beat Pearce. A
Sanderoff agreed with Kissling that a Democrat’s chance at beating Peace would be hampered by a primary race, but he said Kissling is “not the most credible or well-funded candidate.”
For a Democrat to have a shot at winning, Sanderoff said Pearce would have to face a scandal that challenges his credibility, and the national wave that favored Democrats in 2006 would have to continue in 2008. Sanderoff predicted the second would happen because of the unpopularity of the continuing war in
In addition, should
Fundraising must be an immediate focus
McCamley is a graduate of
He is executive director of the New Mexico Rural Development Response Council and has worked in many small communities in the congressional district, which could help him on the east side. McCamley said he plans to spend the next couple of months traveling the district to “continue my conversations about how we make
He will also need to immediately focus on fundraising. Though Kissling started 2007 with only $2,555 in his congressional account, Pearce had $147,446.
Sanderoff said a Democrat, to successfully challenge Pearce, must convince the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee that he is in “a viable race to unseat an incumbent.” Doing that meant millions of dollars for Patricia Madrid’s unsuccessful campaign last year to unseat U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M.
McCamley recently went to
“I talked with many members of the DCCC, and they were very encouraging,” he said.
Will Cervantes enter race?
Cervantes is perhaps the most prominent Democrat who has considered running for Pearce’s seat in 2008. He said in December that he was seriously thinking about such a run.
“I think there are great opportunities to better represent this community in
Cervantes is one to wait patiently for what he believes to be the right time to make a move, and he’s keenly aware that other strong Democrats, including Sen. John Arthur Smith of Deming and Attorney General Gary King, ran against Pearce and lost after resource-draining primaries.
Cervantes told me in December that he and his family would, “as soon as I’m done with the session,” meet and “make an intelligent decision and determine whether we’re the right person to represent this community and the southern half of the state.”
I was unable to reach Cervantes for comment this afternoon.
In recent months, Pearce has been eyeing the Senate seat held by Pete Domenici and the governor’s office. Though it’s not likely, if the current scandal involving
That would eliminate the Republican incumbency advantage in the 2nd District and might tempt Cervantes and other Democrats into the race.