A 1980 U.S. Supreme Court ruling will keep the Republicans from running a candidate for the New Mexico House seat being vacated by Hector Balderas, the secretary of state\u2019s office says.<\/p>\n
Balderas withdrew his name from the Northern-New Mexico House race after the Democratic Party placed him on the ballot to run for state auditor. The Republicans attempted to place Roger Gonzales of Mora on the ballot, but their request was denied by the secretary of state\u2019s office.<\/p>\n Before Balderas withdrew, he was running unopposed because the Republicans placed no one on the ballot for the primary. A vacancy on the Democratic side does not give the Republicans a second change to field a candidate and \u201ctwo bites of the apple,\u201d said Ray Baray, spokesman for the secretary of state\u2019s office.<\/p>\n If he\u2019s right, no one is on the ballot in that House race. Sources say Democrats planned that so that, if Balderas is unsuccessful in his bid for auditor, he can be reappointed to the House seat by the governor.<\/p>\n The 1980 death of Congressman Harold Runnels, who was running unopposed in that year\u2019s general election, created a similar situation. The Democrats placed the name of David King on the ballot to replace that of Democrat Runnels. Republicans tried to put Joe Skeen on the ballot, but their request was denied because their party did not run a candidate in the primary.<\/p>\n Republicans sued all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which denied Skeen a spot on the ballot. Incidentally, Skeen went on to become the third write-in candidate elected in the history of Congress.<\/p>\n That case answers the question about whether Gonzales gets a spot on the ballot, Baray said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re very confident,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause the Republicans did not have a nominee, there was no vacancy created.\u201d<\/p>\n