Straw-poll victories are signs of organizational strength, so the campaigns of Barack Obama, Don Wiviott and Martin Heinrich have to be pleased with their success in a straw poll taken Tuesday evening in
In the presidential race, Obama topped Hillary Clinton with 50 votes to her 41 after Javier Gonzales, chairman of the New Mexico Highlands Board of Regents, spoke for Obama. John Edwards, who is dropping out of the race today (click here to read about that), received 28 votes.
In the Third Congressional District race, Wiviott received 50 votes. Ben R. Luján came in second with 33 votes. And in the First Congressional District race, Heinrich received 30 votes to Michelle Lujan-Grisham’s five votes.
The event, held in Rio Rancho, was sponsored by the New Mexico Democratic Club and the Democratic Women of Sandoval County.
The winners are the candidates generally favored by progressive Democrats. I’ve written often in recent weeks about the organizational strength of progressives in Las Cruces – who recently took control of the city council – so, in my view, this is more an indication of the organizational strength of the progressive movement in New Mexico than it is an indication of the strength of individual campaigns.
But those progressives are helping the campaigns of those who won the straw poll. That’s enough to concern any Democratic candidate not favored by progressives.
Straw polls also indicate reaction to the candidates. Those in attendance apparently related more to the speech given by Wiviott than that given by Luján, for example.
Wiviott touted his success in a news release.
“I am encouraged by the support I received in
The victory by Heinrich wasn’t a surprise, but most Democrats consider