New Mexico primary holds implications for Legislature and prosecutor in Alec Baldwin case
implications for Native American communities, the state's oil industry and the #MeToo movement. New Mexico has a closed primary system that limits participation to voters who register with major parties, leaving out Independent or unaffiliated voters, but not Libertarians. Making it through to the general election might hinge on small margins because of generally low turnout.
About 205,000 ballots were cast in early, absentee and in-person voting as of early evening Tuesday, out of about 1.3 million registered voters. Democrats are picking district attorneys in crime-weary Albuquerque and the Santa Fe area, where Alec Baldwin is scheduled to stand trial in July in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer. NATIVE AMERICAN INFLUENCE In Senate District 30, activist Angel Charley of the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women is seeking the Democratic nomination against pro-business, socially conservative former Sen.
Clemente Sanchez in a redrawn district with more Native American influence. Charley is Diné, with Laguna and Zuni Pueblo ancestry. There are no Republican contenders in the district stretching from Isleta Pueblo near Albuquerque to the Arizona state line, traversing Acoma and Laguna pueblos.
In House District 69, incumbent Democratic Rep. Harry Garcia of Grants is seeking a fifth term, with two challengers in the decisive primary. They are: attorney Michelle “Paulene" Abeyta of To’hajiilee on the Navajo Nation, and state employee and miner Stanley Michael of San Mateo.
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