Democrat Deb Haaland has won New Mexico's
gubernatorial election, becoming the first Native American woman elected
governor of a US state. Haaland, a member of Laguna Pueblo, previously
represented New Mexico in Congress and served as US interior secretary under
President Joe Biden.
The Associated Press called the race for Haaland on
Tuesday with an estimated 41 per cent of the vote counted. Unofficial figures
from the New Mexico secretary of state's office showed her with 57 per cent at
8:49 p.m. against Republican Gregg Hull, the former mayor of Rio Rancho.
Haaland watched the results with supporters, fellow
candidates and state Democratic Party officials at the Route 66 Casino Hotel in
Albuquerque after polls closed at 7 p.m. She ran alongside New Mexico
Commissioner of Public Lands Stephanie Garcia Richard, while Hull's running
mate was Republican state Senator David Gallegos.
She defeated Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam
Bregman in the June Democratic primary and significantly outraised Hull in the
general election. Her campaign finance filings routinely ran to thousands of
pages because of the number of donors, and at times caused the secretary of
state's website to crash.
The general election campaign was largely cordial,
although Hull criticised Haaland for withdrawing from a televised debate. She
said the date preferred by broadcaster KOB-TV conflicted with a prior
commitment to meet farmers in southern New Mexico.
Haaland campaigned on lowering living costs, creating
a public health insurance option and overhauling the state's child welfare
agency. In September, she pledged to sign an executive order on taking office
that would pause new large-scale data centre projects statewide until lawmakers
pass legislation regulating them.
She will succeed Democratic Governor Michelle Lujan
Grisham, who was first elected in 2018 and could not run again because of term
limits. Haaland previously succeeded Lujan Grisham as the representative for
New Mexico's 1st Congressional District, becoming one of the first two Native
American women elected to Congress. She later became the first Native American
to serve as a US Cabinet secretary.
Taking the stage to chants of her name, Haaland
thanked Hull for running a "respectful" campaign. She said projected
Democratic wins in New Mexico and elsewhere showed voters were tired of the
Trump administration's policies. Drawing on her time in Congress during Donald
Trump's first term, she pledged to oppose cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as governor. "I've stood up to Donald
Trump before and I'm ready to do it again," she said.
Haaland also spoke about the significance of
celebrating on Laguna Pueblo land along Route 66. She recalled carrying water
from a community spigot and helping irrigate her grandfather's cornfield.
"And just off this road, my grandmother was taken away to boarding school
… yet we are still here," she said. As interior secretary, she oversaw the
Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative, which sought to address the lasting
harm those schools caused to Indigenous families and communities.
She told supporters that her experience as a single
working mother helped her understand the financial pressures facing New
Mexicans, and spoke about working on her sobriety, raising a child in poverty
and registering voters on dirt roads and in dust storms before entering
Congress. "Right now, New Mexicans are working hard, doing everything
they're supposed to, and yet we still struggle to get ahead," she said.
"I believe that no matter where you come from, how much money you have, or
what challenges you've faced, every New Mexican deserves the chance to
thrive."
Speaking to reporters after her speech, Haaland said
she was encouraged by Democrats' projected gains in Congress and hoped to work
closely with Democrat Gina Hinojosa, the projected winner of the Texas
governor's race.
Comments:
Leave a Reply