Howard Dean speaking in Albuquerque during the 2008 national election. (Photograph by Matthew Reichbach)

Howard Dean speaking in Albuquerque during the 2008 national election. (Photograph by Matthew Reichbach)

Mayor Martin Chavez has gained some high profile support in his quest to be reelected next week.

An automated call that reached Albuquerque households Tuesday night contained a message from Howard Dean urging folks to vote for Chavez.

Dean is the former chair of the Democratic National Committee. During his tenure at DNC, he pioneered what is known as the “50 state strategy,” in which the Democratic party attempts to grow a base of support in all 50 states, even those that seem unlikely to produce electoral college wins for the Democratic presidential candidate.

In 2007, Dean appointed Chavez to the Democratic National Committee.

In the call to Albuquerque voters, Dean says:

In these tough economic times, Marty Chavez has been a steady leader for Albuquerque, attracting new jobs, greening Albuquerque, and keeping Albuquerque on the right course. One thing my experience has taught me is to not change courses when you’re on the right course. I’ve witnessed the best of America and have also seen how rare it is to meet a public servant who delivers on his word. Again, this is Howard Dean asking you to vote for Marty Chavez on October 6.

Dean rose to prominence during a bid for the Democratic party’s nomination for president in 2004.  He successfully mobilized a constituency of bloggers to support his candidacy and started a group called Democracy for America.

That group led to the creation of Democracy for New Mexico, the blog of Barb Wold who endorsed Chavez this week. Here is the post from 2004 in which Wold announced the origins and formation of her blog, in relation to DfA and Dean.

Update: Since this blog was published, a commentary by Dean was published on the Democracy for New Mexico website giving his reasons for supporting Chavez. In it, he says that, among other things, Chavez has “…real, progressive accomplishments and they show that you have a Mayor who thinks globally and acts locally.”

Read the entire commentary here.