New Mexico Republican candidate for Secretary of State and Albuquerque lawyer JoHanna Cox announced Wednesday she’s dropping out of her race.
Cox cited the need to take care of her family as why she could not continue running.
“Unfortunately, I am unable to continue this campaign because my family requires my full attention at this moment,” Cox wrote in a statement.
Cox said she would “give my full support to the candidate who takes my place on the ballot.”
The Albuquerque Journal recently reported Cox faced three legal malpractice lawsuits in the past six years. In her statement, Cox did not mention the Journal report or the lawsuits against her as reasons for dropping out.
This is a breaking news story and we will add more information as we receive it.
Cox also had problems fundraising, and reported just $1,300 cash on hand in the final pre-primary campaign finance reports.
By dropping out after last week’s primary election she allows the Republican Party of New Mexico to choose a replacement for the general election in November. If Cox dropped out prior to the primary election, the state Republican Party would have been left without a candidate for Secretary of State for the general election.
Now it is up to the state Republican Party to replace Cox, if they decide to. The potential replacement candidate would face Democratic incumbent Maggie Toulouse Oliver and former Democratic legislator Sandra Jeff, who is running as a Libertarian in November. Cox, Jeff and Toulouse Oliver all ran unopposed in the primary election.
