Leger Fernandez apparent Democratic winner in CD3

Republicans in three-way race too close to call

SANTA FE — Teresa Leger Fernandez was the apparent winner in the Democratic Party primary election for the 3rd Congressional District seat, and the Republican primary race was too close to call, while votes were still being counted late Tuesday night.

The candidates were competing for the seat being vacated by Democratic Rep. Ben Ray Luján, who is running for U.S. Senate to replace the retiring Tom Udall, also a Democrat.

There were delays in reporting results in several northern counties. Santa Fe and San Miguel counties hadn’t reported any results until after 10:30 p.m.

Election officials in Santa Fe County said they had been overwhelmed by the number of absentee ballots.

Late Tuesday, Leger Fernandez, a Santa Fe attorney, was leading a pack of seven Democrats with 42% of the vote, followed by former CIA operative Valerie Plame with 23%, and state Rep. Joseph Sanchez of Alcalde with 13%.

“This is a win for communities, families and workers all across our district, and I am grateful for the trust that voters have placed in our campaign’s vision for Northern New Mexico,” Leger Fernandez said in a statement. “Even in a time when we must continue to stay physically distant and so much tries to divide us, this campaign has always been about interconnectedness and coming together.”

Accepting defeat late Tuesday, Plame thanked her supporters.

“While tonight’s results were not what we had hoped for, your support and dedication give me hope that New Mexico will come out of this pandemic stronger than ever,” she said.

Rounding out the field were 1st Judicial District Attorney Marco Serna (8%), Sandoval County Treasurer Laura Montoya (7%), former federal and state government administrator John Blair (5%) and Taos environmental attorney Kyle Tisdel (2%).

Republicans were locked in a tight threeway race.

Retired oil and gas engineer Alexis Johnson was leading with 37% of the vote. Harry Montoya, a former Santa Fe County commissioner who now works as constituent affairs director with the state’s Children Youth and Families Department, had received 34%, and small business owner Karen E. Bedonie of the Mexican Springs had 29% at the Journal’s deadline.

The 3rd Congressional District — the most racial and economically diverse of New Mexico’s three congressional districts — has been dominated by Democrats since its inception in 1982.

And all eyes were on the Democratic primary, as the winner is expected to be a heavy favorite to win the seat in November’s general election, based on history and financial resources. All the Democrats in the race raised more money than the top fundraising Republican, according to the most recent campaign reports filed last month with the Federal Election Commission.

What’s more, the three Democrats who have represented the district over the past four decades — Bill Richardson (1983-1997), Tom Udall (1999-2009) and Lujan (2009-present) — each held the seat for at least five terms and never failed to be reelected. Each left the office on their own accord.

Only once has a Republican held the seat, and even then not for a full term. Bill Redmond won a three-way special election in 1997 to finish out Richardson’s last term after he resigned to become U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

The Democratic campaign had been amiable until mid-May, when a pair of so-called dark-money groups started spending on behalf of Leger Fernandez, who by then had established herself as a favorite, winning the delegate vote at the pre-primary convention by a wide margin.

A poll later released by EMILY’S List — one of the many groups and individuals that endorsed Leger Fernandez — showed the Las Vegas, New Mexico, native with a sizable lead. The poll of 661 voters surveyed by phone May 20-21 indicated 33% favored Leger Fernandez, compared with 24% for Plame.

Dark-money groups are political committees independent of any campaign that work either for or against a candidate and whose contributors are not disclosed.

It was during a candidate forum cosponsored by the Journal and KOAT-TV that Blair criticized dark-money spending on behalf of Leger Fernandez, earning a quick second from Montoya.

Others agreed that dark money was against Democratic Party values, and the issue became a sticking point for Leger Fernandez the final two weeks of the campaign.

First reported by Politico, Perise Practical Inc. and Avacy Initiatives Inc. spent more than $300,000 on positive TV spots that highlighted Leger Fernandez’s background and connection to northern New Mexico.

Days later, another dark-money group, the Alliance to Combat Extremism, announced it had spent six figures on inflammatory anti-Plame ads that labeled her as a “disgraced racist millionaire” and got play on YouTube and social media sites.

The ads attacked Plame for a 2017 retweet of an anti-Semitic article titled “America’s Jews are Driving American Wars,” an action Plame has repeatedly apologized for, calling the mistake a “doozy.”

In the final week of the campaign, Plame benefited from outside help, though not a dark-money group. VoteVets, which does disclose its contributors, starting running ads supporting her.

During a campaign season restrained by the coronavirus outbreak, campaigns eschewed traditional activities such as canvassing neighborhoods, going to house parties and holding rallies. Those with the financial resources appealed to stay-athome voters through television ads.

Plame’s campaign raised more than $2 million through May 13, while Leger Fernandez was second in the money race at $1.3 million, according to FEC filings. Serna had raised $683,000 and Blair generated nearly $400,000, while the other candidates raised considerably smaller amounts.

On the Republican side, Bedonie raised $38,000, followed by Montoya, with $19,000, and Johnson, with nearly $10,000.