{"id":26242,"date":"2011-02-18T11:14:23","date_gmt":"2011-02-18T18:14:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmpolitics.net\/index\/?p=26242"},"modified":"2011-02-18T21:28:13","modified_gmt":"2011-02-19T04:28:13","slug":"bingaman-to-retire-washington-post-reports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2011\/02\/bingaman-to-retire-washington-post-reports\/","title":{"rendered":"Bingaman won\u2019t seek a sixth term"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, right, with Sen. Tom Udall. (Photo by Heath Haussamen)<\/p><\/div>\n

Senator\u2019s retirement opens up a much-coveted seat and could reshape the New Mexico political map<\/h4>\n

(Updated several times, still developing. Check back for additional updates.)<\/em><\/p>\n

U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman<\/a>, D-N.M., will retire rather than seeking a sixth term next year.<\/p>\n

Bingaman plans to make the formal announcement at 1:30 p.m. today at Hotel Andaluz in Albuquerque. The announcement will be webcast live<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cRepresenting the people of New Mexico in the Senate is a great honor, and a great responsibility which I have enjoyed for over 28 years,\u201d Bingaman will say, according to spokeswoman Jude McCartin.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the end of this Congress, I will have been in public service for 34 years \u2013 four as New Mexico\u2019s attorney general, and thirty in the United States Senate,\u201d he will say.<\/p>\n

The news of Bingaman\u2019s retirement was first reported by the Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The retirement of Bingaman, 67, opens up a much-coveted seat and could reshape the New Mexico political map. Sources say Democrats who are considering running include U.S. Reps. Martin Heinrich<\/a> and Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n<\/a> and former Lt. Gov. Diane Denish<\/a>. On the Republican side, former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson<\/a> has already said she\u2019s considering running<\/a>, and two less-known candidates have already entered the race<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In addition, a source close to U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce<\/a>, R-N.M., confirmed that the congressman \u201cwill take a serious look at\u201d running for the Senate seat.<\/p>\n

Wilson didn\u2019t want to talk about what Bingaman\u2019s retirement means for her consideration of the race.<\/p>\n

\u201cSenator Bingaman\u00a0has served well and faithfully, and today is his day,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Bingaman had been expected by most to seek re-election. Though McCartin said in November that a formal announcement wasn\u2019t likely until March, she also pointed out that he held a campaign fundraiser<\/a> last October.<\/p>\n

Late last year, sources told NMPolitics.net they expected Bingaman to seek another term. Instead, a senator who has held his seat since 1983 is bowing out after a lengthy career in public service that has included chairing the Senate Energy Committee<\/a> and having a lot of influence in Washington.<\/p>\n

Reaction to Bingaman\u2019s retirement<\/h3>\n

<\/p>\n

Gov. Susana Martinez<\/a>, a Republican, issued a statement wishing Bingaman the best and stating that his \u201ccommitment and service to our great state has truly made a lasting and positive impact on every one of its citizens.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, New Mexicans offer their sincere thanks and gratitude to an upstanding man of character who has served his state with great honor and distinction,\u201d Martinez said. \u201cFor nearly 30 years, Jeff\u00a0Bingaman\u00a0has represented New Mexico in the\u00a0U.S. Senate\u00a0and, during that time, he has served as a strong advocate for his constituents and contributed significantly to some of the most important debates in our nation\u2019s history.\u201d<\/p>\n

State Auditor Hector Balderas<\/a>, a Democrat, called Bingaman \u201cone of the few public servants to exemplify the best in America.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDedicated, hard working and whip smart, he uses his gifts to move our state forward through challenging times with an eye on what\u00a0is truly best for our state in the long-term,\u201d Balderas said, adding that he looks forward to continuing to work with Bingaman over the course of the next two years before his retirement.<\/p>\n

Balderas said one of Bingaman\u2019s \u201cgreatest unspoken legacies\u201d will be \u201cthat\u00a0he has served as role model to young elected officials like myself on how to comport oneself in public life \u2014 focus on making people\u2019s lives better and do so with humility.\u201d<\/p>\n

Javier Gonzales, chairman of the Democratic Party of New Mexico, said Bingaman \u201chas been a strong and steady leader always focused on what\u2019s best for all New Mexicans.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSenator Bingaman has been a tireless leader on energy, public lands, health care, education, immigration and his courageous vote against the Iraq war,\u201d Gonzales said. \u201cI join all New Mexicans in thanking Senator Bingaman for his service.\u00a0His wisdom and experience will be sorely missed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pearce spokesman Eric Layer initially said the congressman had no comment on Bingaman\u2019s retirement. He added that Pearce\u2019s priority \u201cis serving the Second (Congressional) District.\u201d He later released a statement in which Pearce congratulated Bingaman, saying he had \u201cworked as a tireless public servant for more than three decades.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has been and continues to be a privilege to call Jeff my friend and colleague,\u201d Pearce said. \u201cI look forward to working alongside him in his last two years serving the people of New Mexico.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senate race will be hotly contested<\/h3>\n

The National Republican Senatorial Committee<\/a> was quick to strike following news of Bingaman\u2019s retirement. From a news release:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt speaks volumes about the state of the two political parties that as strong Republican candidates step forward in key races, Senate Democrats in important battleground states are stepping aside.\u00a0Like the earlier retirements in North Dakota and Virginia, Senator Bingaman\u2019s decision immediately presents another strong pickup opportunity for Senate Republicans. It also further limits the ability of national Democrats to play offense when their resources will be spread out over such an expansive defensive map.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That reflects a tough political reality for Democrats: Bingaman is the third Democratic senator to announce he won\u2019t seek re-election next year, and it\u2019s going to take a lot of hard work and money for Democrats to hold on to this seat.<\/p>\n

Recent polling<\/a> from the Democratic firm Public Policy Polling indicated that Bingaman would have been in a strong position if he sought re-election \u2013 but that the race could be a toss-up if he did not.<\/p>\n

Former Republican Gov.\u00a0Gary Johnson<\/a> was the strongest Republican in a race for an open seat, followed by Wilson and then Pearce. Johnson was viewed favorably by 44 percent of those surveyed, while Wilson was viewed favorably by 39 percent and Pearce was viewed favorably by 35 percent.<\/p>\n

Public Policy Polling tested several potential contests. For example, its survey found Johnson leading Heinrich 44 percent to 43 percent, while Wilson trailed Heinrich 50 percent to 39 percent and Pearce trailed Heinrich 53 percent to 38 percent.<\/p>\n

Johnson led Luj\u00e1n by an even greater margin \u2013 45 percent to 40 percent \u2013 while Wilson trailed him 48 percent to 40 percent, and Pearce trailed him 49 percent to 37 percent.<\/p>\n

Gonzales said the Democratic Party has \u201can incredibly strong bench of candidates to draw from, and the Democratic Party is going to work hard every day to ensure our nominee wins in November.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UPDATED: U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., will retire rather than seeking a sixth term next year. He plans to make the formal announcement this afternoon in Albuquerque. The announcement will be webcast live.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,1],"tags":[156,116],"class_list":["post-26242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news-and-analysis","category-uncategorized","tag-2012-election","tag-washington"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26242","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=26242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26242\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}