History gives Democrat edge in governor race

[TexasTowelie]

SANTA FE – If recent New Mexico political history is any indication, Michelle Lujan Grisham and other Democrats could have the wind at their backs in this year’s general election.

That’s because the state’s last seven gubernatorial elections – stretching back to 1990 – have been won by a candidate from the opposite major political party of the sitting president.

Brian Sanderoff, a longtime New Mexico political observer, said there’s a reason for that, as voters often tend to punish the president’s political party in midterm elections, which happen to be when New Mexico gubernatorial elections take place.

“It’s more than a coincidence that for seven consecutive gubernatorial races the winning candidate was from the opposite party of the president,” said Sanderoff, who’s also the president of Albuquerque-based Research & Polling Inc. “The mood of the nation influences gubernatorial races and state legislative races.”

Read more: https://www.abqjournal.com/1214029/history-gives-democrat-edge-in-governor-race.html

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. She will probably win the election.

Even though she's not a very good candidate, and will be at best a mediocre governor.

Sigh. I live in New Mexico. Susana Martinez has been a terrible Governor. She won only because the citizens of this state were inexplicably biased against Diane Denish, her opponent. Well, maybe not so inexplicable in that Denish had been Lieutenant Governor under Bill Richardson who'd become very unpopular in this state. I only moved here in 2008, so there's a lot I don't get about what was going on back then. But I do know that Martinez is both unpopular and invisible at this point. She's ineffective and irrelevant.

Here's my personal Susana Martinez story. Several years ago I worked the information desk at the one and only hospital in Santa Fe. That year we had a lot of wild fires, and many fire fighters from other states here. One of those fire fighters, someone from another state, Montana I believe (remember this, it's important) had been injured and was being treated in our hospital. One afternoon I fielded a call from someone from the Governor's office, telling me she wanted to visit that fire fighter, so I promptly and appropriately forwarded that call to our security people. A bit later several young men showed up to visit Fireman X. As an aside, I'm totally impressed at how fit and handsome all fire fighters are. Sigh. Anyway, I gave them the room number for the person they wanted. A few minutes later they came back by me, all dejected. I asked them what was wrong, and they said there was a Do Not Disturb sign on their friend's door. They left. A couple of minutes later the Governor showed up. I recognized her, and briefly stopped her and asked if she knew where she was going. She said, yes. I asked if she wanted me to call the nurse's station, and she said no. Fine. About three minutes after her my fireman came back, all happy, and told me their friend had called them and they were welcome to visit. I told them if when they got there if some lady was in the room just throw her out. I knew that firefighters from Montana would not have a clue what the Governor of New Mexico looked like. A few minutes later she came back downstairs and passed my desk. It was a long time before the firefighter friends came down.

[TexasTowelie]

2. Was she intoxicated again?

They probably thought she was someone from the billing department at the hospital. That would correlate to her wardrobe and demeanor.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

3. Actually the incident at the hotel occurred after that visit to the hospital.

And, for what it's worth, there have been no subsequent reports of public intoxication on her part.

And I knew perfectly well who she was. It's just that the out of state fire fighters wouldn't have had a clue. Oh, to have been a fly on the wall when they entered that room.