House candidates square off at forum

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Candidates for state representative seats in Doña Ana County shared their views during a League of Women Voters forum Tuesday in Las Cruces. There are four contested races, and three representatives running unopposed. In the District 53 race, Democrat Nate Cote said voters should oust his opponent, 12-year Republican Rep. Terry Marquardt. “I believe the people of District 53 deserve better than they are now getting,” he said. “I sincerely believe I can make a difference.” Marquardt said he’s providing leadership as the House Minority Whip that gives voters in his district a unique opportunity. Continue Reading

Dendahl goes on attack during TV interview

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Republican gubernatorial candidate John Dendahl used his half-hour interview with the news anchors for KOB-TV in Albuquerque to trash Gov. Bill Richardson, the commuter rail and public funding of the spaceport Tuesday night, according to news accounts. Democratic congressional candidate Al Kissling received hardly a mention in the media, so I can’t tell you a thing about his time. Both got free air time after their opponents refused to debate. Dendahl, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican, thanked KOB for the airtime, to which anchor Carla Aragon said, “It’s a service to the voters,” contrasting statements by the Richardson campaign that a debate that included Dendahl airtime would “tear down New Mexico” and be a “disservice to the voters.” Dendahl took a shot at Richardson’s refusal to debate, according to the newspaper. “I thought that someone who has held public office basically since 1982 would want to debate someone like me who has never held elective office,” Dendahl said, adding that he thinks Richardson won’t debate him because he doesn’t want 2008 presidential opponents to have the video to use in commercials. Continue Reading

Commission considers tax hike for spaceport

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Fresh off this week’s International Symposium for Personal Spaceflight and Wirefly X Prize Cup, the Doña Ana County Board of Commissioners will consider Tuesday starting the process of raising the gross receipts tax to help fund Spaceport America. Commissioner Bill McCamley will make a presentation on the spaceport. He will also ask his peers to approve a resolution that supports the creation of a spaceport taxing district and directs staff to draft an ordinance that would take the 1/4 percent gross receipts tax increase proposal to voters. If approved by commissioners Tuesday and with a later vote formally approving the ordinance, a special election would be held on April 3. The last gross receipts tax increase, for public safety, amounted to a 1/8 percent hike. Continue Reading

Republican assessor candidate says his signs were also knocked over

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H.F. “Junior” Adams, the Republican candidate for Doña Ana County assessor, says it wasn’t only Democratic signs along Roadrunner Parkway that were knocked over and destroyed during the weekend. Adams said several of his signs were knocked over, but were standing again when I took photographs of the vandalism Monday because he had already been by to put them back up. One of my photos of the vandalism (scroll down to read about it) showed a large sign belonging to Adams’ his opponent, Democrat Gary Pérez, destroyed, with a smaller Adams sign standing next to it. Though no one has accused him, Adams said he wanted Pérez to know he didn’t destroy the signs. “I told Pérez, ‘I’m gonna beat you fair and square,’” Adams said. Continue Reading

Check out Sun-News’ voters guide

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The Las Cruces Sun-News finally put online today its voter guide that ran in Sunday’s print edition. You can check out the 32-page section by clicking here. In addition, check out today’s Albuquerque Tribune article on the gubernatorial race by clicking here. And check out the Sun-News’ profile of the House District 35 race between incumbent Democrat Antonio Luján and Republican challenger Lawrence Joy by clicking here. Continue Reading

PRC candidates to debate on radio program

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The candidates for the Public Regulation Commission seat currently held by Democrat E. Shirley Baca will debate on Oct. 26. Michael Swickard and I are organizing the debate and will moderate. It will be held from 8-10 a.m. next Thursday on The Morning Show With Michael Swickard, which can be heard throughout much of Southern New Mexico on KSNM-AM 570. The District 5 candidates are Republican Earl Greer and Democrat Sandy Jones, who knocked off Baca in the primary. Continue Reading

Debate duckers lose: Underdogs get free air time

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Because Gov. Bill Richardson and U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce are trying to duck debates, an Albuquerque television station is giving their opponents free air time tonight. Republican gubernatorial candidate John Dendahl and Democratic congressional candidate Al Kissling each have a half hour to share their views on KOB-TV. The broadcast begins at 7 p.m. The move comes after Richardson and Pearce declined invitations from the station to debate. Kudos to the station for standing up to politicos who think they don’t have to debate their opponents. This will give voters throughout the state a chance to see their opponents in action. Continue Reading

Polls confirm Madrid’s lead over Wilson

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U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., is now trailing Democratic challenger Patricia Madrid in three recent polls. Earlier this month, a Reuters/Zogby poll had Madrid up 50-40 percent. Now a poll done by SurveyUSA and KOB-TV has Madrid up 53-45 percent, with two percent undecided. The poll, conducted Oct. 13-15, surveyed 800 people. Continue Reading

Pearce has time for speeches, but not debates

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Congress has adjourned. U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., should have nothing to do right now but focus on his re-election. But he declined an invitation from an Albuquerque television station to debate his opponent, Democrat Al Kissling. He also won’t be at tonight’s League of Women Voters forum in Las Cruces, which Kissling plans to attend. You would think, then, that he must be really busy, right? Continue Reading

Pearce has lots of money; Kissling in the red

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The campaign of Al Kissling, the Democrat trying to unseat U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., is in the red. The Pearce campaign reported a cash balance of $119,283 at the end of September, while Kissling had a deficit of $2,006, according to the Associated Press. Pearce raised $344,000 from July to September, and has raised $1.3 million overall. He has spent $955,000 overall. Kissling raised $52,330 from July to September and has raised a total of $99,600, but he has spent $136,000 overall. Continue Reading

Senate candidate survives fiery car accident

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Allen McCulloch, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, survived a head-on crash Sunday night, then helped pull four passengers from the car he hit, which was on fire, according to the Albuquerque Tribune. McCulloch was unharmed and back on the campaign trail today. McCulloch campaign spokesman Mario Sanchez told the newspaper the candidate was driving home to Farmington about 6:30 p.m. when he hit a patch of water and collided with a vehicle carrying six people. After the accident, the vehicle McCulloch hit caught fire, and one of the women McCulloch pulled from it was also on fire, the Tribune reported. McCulloch is a doctor. Continue Reading

Links for campaign finance reports, profiles

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I’ve now written about the campaign finance reports in most of the local races. To learn about those I haven’t reported on, check out the Las Cruces Sun-News’ article by clicking here. In addition, there are several profiles of races that ran this weekend that you should check out: Check out the Santa Fe New Mexican’s profile of Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson by clicking here. Check out the newspaper’s profile of Republican gubernatorial candidate John Dendahl by clicking here. You can read the Albuquerque Journal’s profile of the gubernatorial race by clicking here. Continue Reading

Democrats’ signs cut up, knocked over

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Several Democratic candidates for office had signs along Roadrunner Parkway cut into pieces and knocked over this weekend, but the vandals left signs belonging to Republican candidates standing. The stretch of the road north of Veteran’s Park is largely undeveloped land. It’s very dark at night, and dozens of sign line both sides of the road. Several large signs belonging to Democratic state representative candidate Jeff Steinborn were cut in half during the weekend. By Monday afternoon, Steinborn had repaired the signs, which he said cost $50-60 apiece. Continue Reading

GOP, oil and gas, target Hatch House member

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Republican Isaac Chavez is raising a lot of money in his bid to unseat Rep. Andy Nuñez, D-Hatch. House District 36 stretches all the way from northwestern Las Cruces up to Hatch. Nuñez, a retired educator, was first elected in 2000, and has become a target of the oil and gas industry because of a bill he has twice sponsored. Chavez, who lives in Las Cruces, started the last reporting period with $1,637 in the bank, but raised $44,069 in cash and $1,770 in in-kind gifts, bringing in more than any other House candidate in the area. He spent $24,173, leaving him with $21,533 in the bank. Continue Reading

King releases analysis of voting record

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Democratic attorney general Gary King’s campaign has provided its own analysis to counter a claim by his opponent that he missed almost 1,300 votes as a legislator. According to King’s campaign, in his 12 years he missed 1,120 votes – and 465 of those were excused, including 166 votes King missed during the 1994 legislative session because he was hospitalized after a serious car accident. Perhaps more importantly, King’s communications director, Phil Sisneros, rightly pointed out that Republican candidate Jim Bibb’s analysis is misleading because it implies that excused absences are bad. Often, legislators have to miss floor votes because they have to take part in a committee meeting, or they have to present a bill to the other chamber or take part in other legislative business. Bibb’s campaign claims its analysis does not include the 1990 and 1994 sessions. Continue Reading