Democratic State Sen. Tim Eichenberg recently made waves throughout the New Mexico blogosphere when he said that he didn’t believe that Lt. Gov. Diane Denish could win the gubernatorial race next year. Now he’s backing off, with a statement e-mailed to political bloggers saying, “I find it unfortunate that my comments were used to create division among Democrats and the Democratic Party…”

Here’s the full text of the statement Eichenberg sent out Monday night:

I find it unfortunate that my comments were used to create division among Democrats and the Democratic Party, I will continue to support both! I realize my comments have stirred emotions on both side of the aisle but I hope they will provoke continued discussions on ethics reform, transparency and accountability.As Lt Gov Diane Denish continues the fight to bring meaningful ethics reform to Santa Fe, I will proudly vote for her proposals to make government more transparent and accountable to the taxpayers. She can lead New Mexico into the future and there is no doubt in my mind who I will vote for in November.

Eichenberg’s original comments indicated that he didn’t think that Denish has done enough to stop the pay-for-play culture in Santa Fe.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Susana Martinez latched onto those comments and today Republican Party chairman Harvey Yates Jr. sent out a statement using Eichenberg’s comments as fuel for a condemnation of Denish: ”I think many New Mexicans—regardless of political affiliation—wonder how Diane Denish can continue to tout her record of leadership while failing to have had the courage to stand against the apparent rampant corruption within the Richardson-Denish administration.”