GOP candidate for lt. governor drops her bid
Former Indian Affairs secretary cites concerns about residency requirements
ALBUQUERQUE — The only Republican candidate for New Mexico lieutenant governor has abruptly withdrawn from the race.
Former New Mexico Indian Affairs Department Secretary Kelly Zunie, a member of Zuni Pueblo, dropped out Friday, citing concerns about residency requirements.
Zunie said she may not meet the criteria that candidates continuously live in New Mexico for at least five years preceding Election Day.
Zunie, a New Mexico native, moved back to the state from Utah in July 2014.
She also has faced financial issues, including $15,000 in unpaid Utah state tax liens in 2016.
The trouble, she said, was caused by confusion over filing taxes jointly with her husband, who still lives in Utah.
Her announcement came just a day after New Mexico Democratic gubernatorial candidate Michelle Lujan Grisham called for Democratic state Sen. Michael Padilla of Albuquerque to end his bid for lieutenant governor over claims he harassed women as a city of Albuquerque supervisor.
Padilla has long denied the harassment claims dating back to 2006, which he links to issues of a hostile workplace environment and not sexual harassment.
But according to the Albuquerque Journal, Padilla resigned from his city position in 2007, following the allegations and an investigation that found he had made insulting remarks. And a federal court jury in 2010 found the city of Albuquerque liable for a sexually hostile work environment at the 911 call center where he had worked. He has denied all the allegations.
Zunie, who was the first woman to lead the state Indian Affairs Department, would have made New Mexico history as the first Native American to run for lieutenant governor on the Republican ticket if she had secured the nomination in the primary.
Before stepping into the Cabinet position at the state agency in 2014, Zunie worked for Rocky Mountain Power in Utah as a disaster and risk intern, administrative assistant and then as a business analyst, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She has a bachelor’s degree from George Wythe University, a small liberal arts school in Salt Lake City, and a master’s degree in public administration from Brigham Young University, as well as a certificate in massage therapy, according to her LinkedIn profile.
When Zunie stepped down as Cabinet secretary in July, Gov. Martinez, also a Republican, called her “a strong asset in building and growing our relationships with New Mexico’s tribes, nations and pueblos.”
The Democratic field for lieutenant governor so far includes five candidates. Along with Padilla, those running for the Democratic Party’s nomination are retired Eagle Nest teacher Jeff Carr, former state House Majority Leader Rick Miera of Albuquerque, juvenile probation officer David McTeigue of Rio Rancho and Doña Ana County Commissioner Billy Garrett.
Information from The New Mexican was used in this report.