{"id":2429,"date":"2007-10-25T15:12:00","date_gmt":"2007-10-25T21:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/10\/chavez-secures-big-name-support-raises-560k\/"},"modified":"2007-10-25T15:12:00","modified_gmt":"2007-10-25T21:12:00","slug":"chavez-secures-big-name-support-raises-560k","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/10\/chavez-secures-big-name-support-raises-560k\/","title":{"rendered":"Ch\u00e1vez secures big-name support, raises $560K"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Albuquerque Mayor Martin Ch\u00e1vez<\/a>, who is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Pete Domenici<\/a>, R-N.M., is lining up some prominent supporters despite unease among some Democrats about his campaign. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

In the wake of attempts by some to find another top-tier Democrat to enter the race, Ch\u00e1vez has put together a strong team. His campaign will be run by Mark Fleisher, a top operative among state Democrats. Nationally-known firms will handle media, fundraising, polling and other issues.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He also said today, during an interview in Las Cruces, that those who have signed on to his campaign include Ed Romero, the former ambassador to Spain and a close friend of Gov. Bill Richardson<\/a>, and Jamie Koch and Johnny Cope, giants in the state Democratic Party who are close to Richardson and involved with Lt. Gov. Diane Denish\u2019s<\/a> 2010 gubernatorial campaign.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a presidential-caliber team \u2013 what you need to run a national campaign,\u201d Ch\u00e1vez said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He was in Las Cruces<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> to meet with supporters and community leaders as he attempts to build momentum for his Senate campaign.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Koch is the finance co-chair of Denish\u2019s 2010 campaign and a former business partner of her late father, Roll Call<\/a> reported today. The Washington<\/st1:place><\/st1:state> publication also reported that Ch\u00e1vez has secured $560,000 in financial pledges for his senatorial campaign in less than a month.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Thus far, Ch\u00e1vez is the only top-tier Democrat who has jumped into the race. U.S. Rep. Tom Udall<\/a> has announced he won\u2019t run for the Senate seat. Denish is considering the race but hasn\u2019t announced a decision, and a spokesman said today he has nothing new to report. Three lesser-known Democrats, Don Wiviott<\/a>, Jim Hannan<\/a> and Leland Lehrman<\/a>, are running.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The progressive problem<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Securing big-name supporters and financial contributions is an important step for Ch\u00e1vez\u2019s senatorial campaign, but he has another problem to overcome: Progressive Democrats, at least those in the Albuquerque<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> area, aren\u2019t his biggest supporters.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

That\u2019s an understatement. After candidates and referenda backed by Ch\u00e1vez, or at least his staffers, were defeated in the recent Albuquerque<\/st1:city><\/st1:place> municipal election, the unique coalition of Republicans and progressive Democrats who made it happen literally celebrated together.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Ch\u00e1vez prides himself on being a moderate Democrat who is pro-business and conservative on crime, but said his record is also one progressives should back.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI think I get a bad rap from progressives,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Ch\u00e1vez said he doesn\u2019t \u201ctake much\u201d from the results of the city election because turnout was only 9 percent. And he said he has led Albuquerque<\/st1:city><\/st1:place> to become a leader on climate-change issues. He said he has fought for light rail in Albuquerque<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> \u2013 a battle he lost \u2013 and helped preserve a great deal of open space.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI have legitimate progressive credentials, but I am pro-business,\u201d Ch\u00e1vez said, adding he believes the two can go together.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

That mix, Ch\u00e1vez said, is what makes him the best candidate in the race.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI feel very strongly that this is going to be a Democratic pickup and I\u2019m going to be that Democrat, because I\u2019m a moderate Democrat,\u201d Ch\u00e1vez said. \u201cI think the Republicans are more afraid of me than some others.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Looking for other candidates<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Many Democrats aren\u2019t so certain. A recent SurveyUSA poll<\/a>, conducted for KOB-TV in Albuquerque, found Pearce beating Ch\u00e1vez by 21 points, while Wilson beat Ch\u00e1vez by four points. That, coupled with Ch\u00e1vez\u2019s unpopularity among some progressives, has many in New Mexico<\/st1:state> and Washington<\/st1:place><\/st1:state> looking for another candidate.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Washington Democrats are pushing Denish hard, and they also want Udall to reconsider. Two grassroots efforts<\/a> have formed to push Udall to run. If neither gets in, many progressives will take a hard look at Wiviott before they decide whether to support the Duke<\/st1:placename> City<\/st1:placetype><\/st1:place> mayor.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Ch\u00e1vez said he isn\u2019t worried. Denish has already raised more than $1 million for a 2010 gubernatorial run, and with Ch\u00e1vez abandoning his gubernatorial bid to instead run for Senate, he said it wouldn\u2019t make sense for her to enter the race. He said he is \u201cnot concerned\u201d even if she does enter the race.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He also said he is confident he would defeat Udall in a primary.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cPhilosophically, he\u2019s so far to the left,\u201d Ch\u00e1vez said. \u201cI\u2019d rather not have him in the race, but that\u2019s a challenge I\u2019d not shy away from.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He also said he isn\u2019t concerned about U.S. Reps. Heather Wilson<\/a> and Steve Pearce<\/a>, the two Republicans who are running. He said Wilson<\/st1:city> \u201cis in trouble\u201d because she\u2019s damaged from the 2006 election and the U.S. attorney scandal<\/a>, and Pearce \u2013 who he called the likely winner of the GOP primary \u2013 \u201cis way outside the mainstream.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Asked about the KOB-TV poll, Ch\u00e1vez said he doesn\u2019t doubt its results. He said his internal polling had him up 41-40 in a potential Senate match-up with Wilson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city>, which is five points different from the KOB-TV poll, not significant considering the margin of error of both polls. He said his polling didn\u2019t consider Pearce, who wasn\u2019t in the race when the poll was conducted, but he\u2019s certain that, as the campaign progresses, his support will grow and his moderate credentials and hard work will propel him to victory.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The Richardson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> question<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>During the interview, Ch\u00e1vez said nothing about what he would do if Richardson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> gets in the race, though he doesn\u2019t believe that will happen.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Richardson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> has said repeatedly he won\u2019t run for Senate even if he loses the presidential race. The reality, however, is that Richardson will likely know by Feb. 5 \u2013 the day a number of large states hold their nominating contests \u2013 whether his presidential run is over. He would have a week to decide whether to run for Senate and gather the signatures to get his name on the ballot, and many suspect he might do that.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cHe told me he isn\u2019t running,\u201d Ch\u00e1vez said of Richardson<\/st1:city><\/st1:place>, adding that the governor encouraged him to run. \u201cI have to take him at his word.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Ch\u00e1vez said becoming the junior senator from New Mexico<\/st1:state> would be a \u201cstep down\u201d for Richardson<\/st1:city> \u2013 especially if he has an opportunity to be secretary of state or hold another prominent position in Washington<\/st1:place><\/st1:state>.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI think Bill\u2019s outgrown that. I think it would drive him nuts,\u201d Ch\u00e1vez said. \u201cSo I don\u2019t know. But we\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Albuquerque Mayor Martin Ch\u00e1vez, who is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., is lining up some prominent supporters despite unease among some Democrats about his campaign. In the wake of attempts by some to find another top-tier Democrat to enter the race, Ch\u00e1vez has put together a strong […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2429"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2429\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}