Ken Miyashima is hoping to be the next governor, but many of the voters he needs do not know which party’s nomination he is trying to capture.
For Miyagishima, the former five-term Las Cruces mayor, that dilemma was on display at a Nov. 6 campaign event in Roswell organized by the local non-profit group Many Hands. As he was speaking with the media after a two-hour discussion with voters at a local coffee shop, Miyagishma was approached by a self-described political independent who asked him whether he is a Democrat or a Republican. An avowed moderate Democrat, Miyagisham answered, but acknowledged it is not the first time there has been confusion about his political affiliation.
“A lot of people think I’m a Republican. In fact, sometimes on my Facebook page, people will start hammering me and then someone will come to my rescue (and write) ‘Hey, I want you to know that Ken is a Democrat,’ Miyagishima said. He told the New Mexico Political Report he has been a registered Democrat since he was 18 years old, but that his positions are not restricted to one side of the political spectrum.
“More Democratic values, probably 60/40 versus Republicans. That is the difference,” he said. One of the major reasons Miyagisham remains a Democrat is because of abortion rights. Despite personal objections to abortion, he said that he firmly believes it is an area where the government should not intervene.
But elsewhere, he espouses positions that would land him squarely in the mainstream of the Republican Party.
“I’m not one of those guys who says, hey, well, you need to raise the minimum wage. No, we need to make sure we have businesses that pay really well,” he said. Miyagishima is also more likely to speak about the oil and gas industry and the revenue it brings into the state than he is about renewable energy.
“If I’m in the sales business and you bring in 40% or 35% of revenue, am I going to try to harm you? Heck no, I want to say, what can I do? How can I help you,” he said.
One of the biggest breaks with his party is on the issue of medical malpractice reform. Miyagishima says the lack of such reform is responsible for the scarcity of medical professionals in the state and blames lawmakers of his own party for stalling when it comes to making those changes. In 2023, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed SB523 which did cap damages at $1 million, absent punitive damages. Hospital and medical companies have argued for greater limits.
On immigration, Miyagishma backs improvements to fixing the system and, as mayor, instituted an immigrant-friendly policy, where police did not ask for individuals’ proof of citizenship if cited for speeding or other minor violations, but if they were booked at the detention center on a felony charge and they are found to be in the country unlawfully, federal authorities would be notified. Miyagishma said he is against legislation backed by many Democrats that would ban counties from entering into immigrant detention contracts with the federal government, saying it is not an issue that should be left up to local governments.
Unlike most Democrats, including his opponents for the party’s nomination, former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman, Miyagishima does not market himself as a populist battle-tested warrior eager to take on President Donald Trump, and the campaign stop in Roswell did not contain the loud passion that has become typical of primaries.
Instead, Miyagishima spent two hours addressing and conversing with a quiet crowd, fielding questions and responding with a combination of policy proposals and personal stories, and portraying himself as a consensus builder.
“I just want to be a resource to cities and counties to help them. I’m not here to be overbearing,” he said. To accomplish this, he told the audience that he wants to have seven deputy chiefs of staff. Six of them would be responsible for working with counties and their residents in an area of the state on concerns and solutions.
Miyagishma is also emphasizing cost-of-living issues, telling the New Mexico Political Report that his plan to increase housing stock will help ease the burden on families seeking affordable housing. A study from the state’s Mortgage Finance Authority published in 2023, the last year Myagishima was in office, found that Las Cruces shoulders the largest housing wage burden in the state caused by a lack of housing supply.
Miyagishma, who served as Las Cruces Mayor from 2007 to 2023, makes his time as mayor of Las Cruces a cornerstone of his campaign, noting that during his tenure, media outlets such as American City & County Magazine ranked Las Cruces one of the top ten best-run cities. He also believes it is that experience that sets him apart from Haaland and Bregman, whose executive experience he said does not provide the wide-ranging experience that being a mayor does.
“Neither one has been a chief executive as I have,” Miyagishima said. Whether that brand of politicking that emphasizes competence and centrism can be a winning combination remains to be seen. Campaign Finance Reports filed with the New Mexico Political Report showed that since launching his campaign earlier this year, Miyagishima’s campaign has taken in $69,152 in contributions, of which $50,0000 Miyagishima loaned to his own campaign. That leaves him far behind Haaland and Bregman, who have raised $6.9 million and 2.6 million, respectively, this election cycle.
Miyagishma has also not received many of the high-profile endorsements of his rivals. But Miyagishima insists that his hard work will pay off.
“Sometimes when you see a duck on the water, he’s real calm, but underneath, they’re paddling away. That’s us,” he said.