NMPolitics.net (https://nmpolitics.net/index/author/heath-haussamen/page/555/)
Ralph Misquez says he won’t apply to be Doña Ana County’s next magistrate judge. Several people have encouraged him to apply, but Democrat Misquez said he won’t. He is still recovering from a four-year campaign for sheriff that ended with a defeat in last week’s election. “It took a toll,” Misquez said. “I’m not ready.” Misquez didn’t discount the possibility of applying for a magistrate position in the future. Continue Reading
Jayme Rubenstein, a reporter with ABC-7 in El Paso, interviewed Las Cruces Public Schools Superintendent Sonia Diaz hours before she was placed on administrative leave on Nov. 7. Rubenstein asked some tough questions and gave Diaz ample time to respond. During the interview, Diaz addressed much of the controversy now swirling around the district. The interview is available online and is 15 minutes long. Continue Reading
If activity on the Bill Richardson for President Yahoo! Group is any indication, the New Mexico governor’s presidential campaign is gaining traction. The group currently has 123 members from across the nation. Though a few blogs promoting a Richardson 2008 run already existed, its members have started additional blogs in several states since he was overwhelmingly re-elected governor last week. Such blogs now exist in Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Mexico, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Continue Reading
Though Gov. Bill Richardson hasn’t yet asked for applications, the race to replace former Magistrate Judge Carlos Garza has begun. Garza was removed from the bench last week by the New Mexico Supreme Court after the Judicial Standards Commission found that he had used illegal drugs and improperly involved himself the court issues of a woman with whom he had a personal relationship. Several sources tell me that retired Las Cruces Police Department sergeant Joel Cano is actively seeking the job. Cano would have been the undersheriff for Democrat Ralph Misquez, had Misquez been successful in his bid to unseat Republican Sheriff Todd Garrison last week. Speaking of Misquez, many Democrats would like to see him apply for the job. Continue Reading
Gov. Bill Richardson turns 59 today, and he has a lot to celebrate this year. He just won re-election with almost 69 percent of the vote – by far the greatest gubernatorial victory in the history of the state. The majority of New Mexicans believe he is ethical despite controversies that have colored his tenure as governor. His party recaptured last week the U.S. House, Senate and the majority of the nation’s governorships, and he had a hand in making it happen. He’s on the short list of Democrats who will likely run for president in 2008. Continue Reading
Two legislators say the Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education’s inaction at today’s meeting is disappointing. The board scheduled Tuesday’s meeting a week ago, but one board member, John Schwebke, is out of the state on business and apparently wasn’t available by telephone. Another, President Sharon Wooden, is out of the country and apparently also not available by phone. Board Member Gene Gant, though he is in town, attended the meeting by phone. Instead of resolving the situation today, Gant and board Vice President Chuck Davis voted to postpone any action and keep Superintendent Sonia Diaz on paid administrative leave for at least another six days. Continue Reading
Republicans who have alleged that there is voter fraud in New Mexico were invited to testify before a legislative committee on Wednesday. U.S. Attorney David Iglesias and State Rep. Justine Fox-Young were asked to provide evidence of past claims they have made about voter fraud. Both informed the Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee today that they won’t appear tomorrow, said State Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces and the committee’s co-chair. “The panel begins tomorrow and we’re learning, for the first time, that not one wants to appear to substantiate their allegations,” Cervantes said. Fox-Young testified before a U.S. House committee in Las Cruces earlier this year that there was evidence dead people were voting in New Mexico. Continue Reading
The Doña Ana County Board of Commissioners certified its election results at a meeting today. The only change with the counting of provisional ballots is that Democrat Jim Baca won the county in the land commissioner race, albeit by a narrow margin. That didn’t affect the statewide results and Republican Pat Lyons’ victory. You can view the county’s results by clicking here. Continue Reading
The Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education has extended the administrative leave of Superintendent Sonia Diaz until Monday. Because the investigation into allegations against Diaz is not complete, and because two board members could not attend the meeting, board Member Gene Gant, who attended today’s meeting by telephone, made the motion to reschedule the meeting for Monday and keep Diaz on paid administrative leave until then. “We have not completed our investigation and more time is needed,” Gant said. “I believe that this action would be in the best interest of all parties.” Gant and board member Chuck Davis voted to do that. Board Member Leonel Briseño voted against it, saying he is not questioning whether Diaz has made mistakes, but that “nothing I have heard warrants continuing Dr. Diaz on leave.” He asked the other members to considering going into executive session to discuss taking Diaz off administrative leave while the investigation is completed, but they were not willing to do that. Continue Reading
There’s a chance the Las Cruces Public Schools Board of Education will postpone later today a decision on whether to remove Superintendent Sonia Diaz from administrative leave. The board is set to meet at 1 p.m., but members John Schwebke and Sharon Wooden will be absent. The other board members will likely discuss in open session whether to move into closed session to discuss Diaz’s employment or whether to postpone the meeting. Continue Reading
More than 39,000 registered voters in Doña Ana County voted in the Nov. 7 general election. The exact number – 39,077 – is 40.6 percent of the 96,246 who were registered to vote for the election. That’s lower than the statewide turnout, but pretty good for this community. There were almost 26,000 votes cast on Election Day. Continue Reading
Since Las Cruces Public Schools Superintendent Sonia Diaz was placed on administrative leave last week, I’ve spent hours talking with people about the situation. This community is incredibly divided. Good people, including many I know personally and respect deeply, are at odds over whether Diaz is the district’s savior or another devil, or something in between. In June, just before the school board voted to hire Diaz, I wrote that the next superintendent would have to reach out to all people in the school district, and that she would have to bring about massive change while also preserving our heritage and honoring our culture. I wrote that even those who are resistant to the change must be included in deciding how it happens, or the division that has consumed this district for years will continue to spread. Continue Reading
It appears there may be several Democrats battling for the right to take on U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M. in 2008. In addition to Democrat Al Kissling’s announcement that he will run again, State Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, and Doña Ana County Commissioner Bill McCamley are considering running. Jeff Steinborn, who was elected last week to the state House, ran unsuccessfully for the congressional seat held by Pearce two years ago but was defeated in the primary. He said it’s too early to think about whether he’ll run again in 2008. Kissling didn’t face primary opposition this year. Continue Reading
Now that the Nov. 7 general election has become the most successful operation run by Doña Ana County in recent years, many are wondering whether Elections Supervisor Lynn Ellins will stay on. Ellins said he hasn’t yet made a decision. “I’m hired here until approximately the middle of January, when all possible chances of appeal have expired,” Ellins said. “I’ll make a decision before then.” Ellins said he will spend the next few months helping further implement the recommendations of the county’s task force on elections. Continue Reading
The Doña Ana County Bureau of Elections has finished sorting through and counting provisional ballots and, in case there were any doubters left out there, they didn’t change the outcome in any race. The county won’t release the actual numbers until the commission meets Tuesday to officially certify the results, said spokesman Jess Williams. He did say his understanding is that the provisional ballots didn’t affect the outcome of any race. The commission has a regularly scheduled meeting for 9 a.m. Tuesday. It will meet to certify the results immediately following that meeting, Williams said. The meeting is at the Doña Ana County Government Center on Motel Boulevard. Continue Reading