I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
Research and Polling, the New Mexico firm headed up by analyst Brian Sanderoff, recently posted an analysis of Albuquerque’s 2009 municipal election on its Web site. The analysis, a series of charts, shows that overall turnout was 25 percent…
Gov. Bill Richardson
As 2009 staggers into the history books, exhausted and a bit lighter in the pockets than when it first appeared on the scene, let’s acknowledge this: the year gave us plenty to write about.
Accusations of pay-to-play, former elected officials getting indicted, electoral surprises and an occasional David toppling a Goliath — 2009 produced it all, giving the year a healthy luster of newsworthiness despite its threadbare look.
The year showed incredible stamina, in fact, with a steady drumbeat of scoops, gotchas and revelations, exhausting many a political junkie and news professional. And 2009 didn’t take long to demonstrate its capacity to shock.
On the fourth day of 2009, an announcement in Washington landed in New Mexico with all the percussive power of a bombshell: Gov. Bill Richardson was withdrawing as President Obama’s commerce secretary, citing a federal corruption investigation into how his administration conducted business.
And the news kept coming.
Some 360 later, the year is ending the way it began — scrutiny, including from federal prosecutors, on how the state invested its money over the past half decade.
In between those two bookends, the state of New Mexico also came to the disturbing realization that it was broke, Albuquerque’s longtime mayor fell short of winning a third four-year term — knocked off by a long-shot two-term GOP state lawmaker — and two former elected officials found themselves on the business end of a criminal indictment.
It’s unclear whether what transpired this year will change the political dynamic here in New Mexico, or lead to more government transparency. But before The New Mexico Independent gets back into the daily grind, let’s take a deep breath and reflect on the busy year that was.
Former City Treasurer Lou Hoffman was a vocal supporter of Richard Romero during Albuquerque’s mayoral campaign, but he’ll be the city’s new Director of Finance and Administration when mayor-elect R.J. Berry takes office Dec. 1.
One thing that didn’t make it into today’s story about Albuquerque’s public financing system is this little tidbit: If campaign activity should have triggered matching funds before election day, but didn’t because of late/improper campaign finance reporting, the city…
While there are some kinks that still need to be worked out, advocates say, the mayor’s race showed the system does what it is intended to do–reduce the influence of special interest money on elections.
When R.J. Berry resigned his position as a state representative on Monday, he removed one from an otherwise growing number of job titles, the biggest one being: mayor of Albuquerque. Rio Rancho mayor Tom Swisstack Swisstack found himself in a similar situation 18 months ago.
The big story Tuesday night was R.J. Berry. The two-term Republican state Representative did well in Democratic strongholds. He won with independents. In fact, Berry walked away with what had been viewed as a close race, besting Mayor Martin Chavez and Richard Romero and avoiding a two-man runoff by capturing nearly 44 percent of the vote.
The unofficial results show that Richard “R.J.” Berry will be the next mayor of Albuquerque, with 186 out of 186 precincts reporting in Albuquerque municipal election.
“Albuquerque voters today voted overwhelmingly for a Democrat to represent them as their mayor,” Democratic Party of New Mexico chairman Javier Gonzales said in a statement released Tuesday night.
Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Steele sent out a statement congratulating state Representative Richard “R.J.” Berry for his victory in Tuesday’s Albuquerque mayoral election.
“It’s not over until it’s over,” Chavez told a crowd of supporters gathered at O’Niell’s, adding, “but it doesn’t look good for our side.”
With 26 percent of precincts reporting in the Albuquerque mayoral election, unofficial election results show Richard “R.J.” Berry continues to lead incumbent mayor Martin Chavez and former state Senate Pro Tem Richard Romero.
In 2005, there were 10,746 early and absentee votes cast in the Albuquerque mayoral race. In 2009, there were nearly twice that: 20,251 votes cast.
Richard “RJ” Berry appears to be winning a plurality of the absentee votes.
The early voting results are in and Richard “RJ” Berry is leading incumbent mayor Martin Chavez and former Senate Pro Tem Richard Romero.
A couple of Alibi blog posts discussing today’s Albuquerque mayoral election take a look at who can really run for office and about the ‘non-partisan’ nature of the race, which is between two Democrats — incumbent mayor Martin Chavez and…
A picture in a piece of campaign literature sent by the campaign of Mayor Martin Chavez apparently includes an image taken by local freelance photographer Mark Bralley –and used without his permission. Blogger Ched MacQuigg, who uses Bralley’s photos on…
Will Martin Chavez win a third consecutive term as mayor? Or will Richard Berry or Richard Romero knock him out? City councilors Michael Cadigan and Isaac Benton are up against tough challengers and some say how their elections go will determine how Albuquerque grows in future years. If you’re on pins and needles waiting to learn the answers to who wins and who loses — because aren’t we all political junkies? — check back frequently, because we’ll be updating this page all day and all night.
Political parties are working their get-out-the-vote (GOTV) efforts in the non-partisan Albuquerque municipal elections. As NMI has observed, the race between incumbent mayor Martin Chavez and former state Senate Pro Tem Richard Romero is looking increasingly like a Democratic…
Public financing appears to be part of the reason the Albuquerque mayor’s race is so competitive. An Albuquerque Journal poll conducted two weeks before the mayoral election surprised observers by showing the race to be much closer than observers had predicted. The big question now is whether one of the candidates can get to 40 percent and avoid a run-off.
