She has put her campaign for lieutenant governor on hold, but campaign finance reports issued last week show that Democrat Stephanie Garcia Richard’s cash haul since April far exceeded those of her two rivals for the party’s nomination.
The reports, which were due on Oct. 14, showed that $165,605 rolled into the campaign of Garcia Richard, who is also the New Mexico Public Lands Commissioner. That included $6,200 from the Fort Sill Apache Tribe of Oklahoma and $5,000 each from both the campaign accounts of former state Rep. Tara Jaramillo (D-Soccoro) and the Jane Fonda Climate PAC, a political action committee associated with the actress and activist.
Garcia Richard outspent her opponents, expending $56,864, leaving her with $141,269 in cash on hand and $9,500 of debt.
The reports came as the race for lieutenant governor was upended on Thursday, when Garcia Richard announced she was suspending her campaign due to her husband’s battle with cancer.
Garcia Richard’s exit from the race leaves two candidates vying to be the party’s nominee: state Sen. Harold Pope (D-Albuquerque) and Jackie Lee Onsuarez, a member of the Loving Village Council.
According to the reports filed, Pope raised $7,054 this past election quarter. He spent $184 in the last six months and now has $16,980 in cash on hand.
Pope provided his campaign with $1,794 in in-kind contributions. The Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute defines in-kind contributions as “goods or services or anything of value contributed to a candidate or committee other than money.” These can include facilities, mailing lists, equipment, supplies, or advertising services.
The biggest contribution to the Pope was $1,500 from his colleague, state Sen. Antionete Sedillo Lopez (D-Albuquerque), according to reports.
Onsuarez lagged behind his two competitors for the nomination, taking in $350 in contributions. He had that same amount on hand at the end of the reporting period. Onsuarez also made $4,470 in in-kind contributions to his campaign, related to establishing a campaign website, social media pages, and covering travel expenses.
Manuel Lardizabal’s campaign raked in $6,787 in the reporting period, of which $3,235 came from a loan the candidate made to his own campaign. He spent $4,644 in the last six months and has $2,142 left in cash on hand.
Aside from the $3,235 loan that Lardizabal, the only Republican candidate running for lieutenant governor made to his campaign, Fulcrum Contracting LLC of Las Cruces represented the largest contributor to Lardizabal, giving $1,000.
New Mexico Secretary of State
Dona Ana County Clerk Amanda López Askin led in fundraising among the three Democrats vying to be the next Secretary of State. No Republicans have yet filed to run for Secretary of State.
Campaign filings show López Askin with a clear advantage over her two opponents, with contributors injecting $147,405 into her campaign. Santa Fe County Clerk Katharine Clark and Sonya Smith, a former secretary of the New Mexico Department of Veterans Services each brought in $81,391 and $10,148, respectively, in the third quarter.
Among the contributions made to López Askin’s campaign was $6,200 from Albuquerque-based attorney Antonia Roybal-Mack, $3,700 from the election committee of Sen. Katy Duhigg (D-Albuquerque) $2,500 from Ben Trujillo, an insurance agent from Las Cruces, and $2,000 from the Arizona-based Mom’s Fed Up PAC.
The campaign filings show that Clark’s top contributors included Lariane Clark, a retiree from Santa Fe who donated a combined total of $8,700, J.D. Bullington Governmental Relations LLC, which gave $2,500 and Vicki Gottlieb, a retiree from Placitas, who contributed $1,500.
Smith’s largest cash contributions were from Angelica Williams Graves of Norfolk, Virginia and Dwayne Wilcher, a sales representative from Maryland, who each gave $500. Patrica Salisbury of Albuquerque provided $3,500 in in-kind contributions associated with a September campaign event.
López Askin’s campaign spent $97,320 during the reporting period, eclipsing the money expended by Clark, who spent $13,348, and Smith, $7,623.
As of the start of October, Clark had the largest amount in her war chest, $82,258. López Askin had $69,084 and Smith had $2,524.
Public Lands Commissioner
The latest campaign reports show Democrat Juan Sanchez ahead of his two Democratic opponents for the state Public Land Commissioner position when it comes to fundraising.
Sanchez, a former political director and campaign manager to New Mexico Democratic Senator Martin Heinrich, had $120,227 pour into his war chest in the recent fundraising quarter. State Rep Matthew McQueen (D-Galisteo) and Jonas Moya, a former state director of the Farm Service Agency, raked in $88,608 and $22,676, respectively.
McQueen’s campaign led the Democratic field in spending, burning through $20,159, while Moya spent $17,618 and Sanchez $17,297. McQueen also went into October with $115,435, making him the candidate with the most cash on hand. Sanchez trailed with $102,929 and Moya with $5,057.
Michael Perry, a Chaves County commissioner and the lone Republican contender in the race, received $37,618. After spending $3,377, he finished the reporting period with $37,721 in his campaign account.
Jonathan Bruser, vice president of the MMR Group, an electrical contractor in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Kennan Brusher, a Baton Rouge homemaker, each provided Sanchez’s campaign with $6,200. The Climate Cabinet, a political action committee, gave $6,000 to Sanchez’s campaign.
McQueen provided the largest infusion of cash for his bid last quarter, with a $10,000 loan. Other donations included $6,200 from retiree Alan McQueen of Ranchos Palos Verdes, California and $5,000 from Lynne Horning, a retiree from the District of Columbia.
Moya’s contributions included $2,500 from Scott Goodman of the Albuquerque-based Goodman Realty Group and $3,500 from J.D. Bullington Governmental Relations LLC.
Much of Perry’s cash haul came from the Roswell area. His biggest contribution was a total of $12,400 from Thomas Krumland, owner of the Krumland Auto Group. Other donors included Kenneth Barbe of Roswell, who gave $2,000 and District 3 Chaves County Commissioner Herbert “Hub” Corn.
According to the Secretary of State’s Office, an individual cannot contribute more than $6,200 to a political campaign, but Perry told New Mexico Political Report that the contributions were made from a joint bank account where Krumland and his wife Linda Krumland, each contributed $6,200 to Perry.
Attorney General
Despite having no opposition so far in either the Democratic primary or the upcoming general election, the reelection campaign of New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez received more than half a million dollars in contributions.
The campaign filings indicate that $678,009 flowed into Torrez’s reelection fund. His largest donors included $12,400 each from Brady Lovelady, president of Perfection Honda in Albuquerque, New Beginnings LLC, a home healthcare provider for individuals with developmental disabilities, from the Parnall Law firm in Albuquerque and the NM Independent Automobile Dealers Association.
During the reporting period, Torrez’s campaign spent $83,675 and now has a $708,953 war chest remaining.
The positions of New Mexico State Auditor, now held by Joseph Maestas and New Mexico Treasurer, now held by Laura Montoya, are also up for reelection. Last week, Maestas, a Democrat, announced in a press release that he will seek reelection next year. However, as of Monday, neither Maestas or Montoya, who is also a Democrat, had filed reports or the paperwork to register a campaign committee.