Dem nominee hopes to fend off bad blood, write-ins
It was a night to remember for Bengie Regensberg, who ran a restaurant, a construction company and the Mora County Democratic Party.
As party chairman, he led a meeting of the central committee to choose a candidate for judge of Mora’s Magistrate Court. Sixty-eight minutes later, Regensberg emerged as the nominee.
The vote totals weren’t made public, but Regensberg and others who were at the meeting say he won easily. Most say Regensberg received 17 votes. The remaining three votes went to some of the other four candidates who sent letters of interest or made a stump speech for the nomination.
Still another candidate says she was blindsided by Regensberg’s nomination and how he received it.
“I was never informed of any meeting,” said Democrat Cindy Garza, the sitting judge by appointment.
Garza was on the staff of longtime Judge John L. Sanchez, a Republican, who retired this year. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham appointed Garza to serve as Sanchez’s successor at least through the November election.
But before Garza’s appointment, Regensberg received the nomination at the central committee’s Feb. 20 meeting to be the Democratic candidate in November.
Regensberg says Garza failed to pay attention to the politics of the process, though in his view it was hard to miss.
“She was chief clerk for the court, working for the judge. She knew he was going to retire or resign way before anyone else did,” Regensberg said. “She had avenues to follow the selection process, and she followed none of them.”
Courthouses are centers for political discourse and gossip. Garza, though, said she heard nothing about the Democrats’ meeting, nor did she see flyers and legal notices advertising it.
“Yes, I work in the courthouse, but I work alone on the second floor with another employee. No, people were not talking about it,” Garza said.
“I heard about it filing day, but it was too late to do anything on the Democratic side so I filed as a write-in candidate.”
She’s not alone. Democrat Timothy Montgomery qualified for the ballot the same way.
Three other Democrats who wanted the judgeship launched write-in campaigns but then withdrew.
The Republican Party has nominated Michael Benjamin as its candidate. He might be positioned to win the judgeship if the Democratic write-in candidates siphon enough votes from Regensberg.
All the interest in being Magistrate Court judge of Mora County, population 4,500, is no surprise to Regensberg.
“It’s a coveted position. The pay is $74,000 to $105,000 depending on experience and population. A lot of people wanted the job,” Regensberg said.
A law degree or even legal training aren’t necessary to be a Magistrate Court judge in a small county such as Mora. None of the candidates are attorneys.
Getting the job is pure politics. Some training in the law will come later for the winner of the election.
Electing a judge without a background in the law is one of the anachronisms of New Mexico’s government. It dates to an era when the population was even more sparse and the number of lawyers was minuscule compared to today.
State government says 67 judges preside in 54 magistrate courts. They have limited jurisdiction, but handle cases involving contracts, felony preliminary hearings, drunken driving and traffic violations.
Garza served as court manager for Sanchez, the previous judge in Mora. The governor named Garza as his successor in July.
Regensberg resigned as Mora County’s Democratic chairman June 24 so he could devote more time to his campaign.
Regensberg predicts Garza’s stay on the bench will be brief, saying his main competition is Benjamin, the Republican candidate.
“He’s good for 600 votes,” Regensberg said. “If there’s low voter turnout, it’s going to be a nail-biter for me. If it’s a good turnout, I’ll get 850 to 900 votes.”
Others in the Democratic Party say Garza is campaigning hard, though
the disadvantage of a write-in campaign is severe.
She said she would have sought the Democratic Party’s nomination had she known of the meeting in which Regensberg was chosen.
As for Regensberg, he said he doesn’t understand how it got by her.
The meeting about the judgeship nomination was previewed at the Mora County Democratic Convention. Flyers were placed in conspicuous places such as the post office. And Regensberg, acting on behalf of the county Democratic Party, placed two public notices in the Las Vegas Optic.
Regensberg said he didn’t remember anyone complaining about the process in
which he ran the meeting where he became the Democratic nominee for judge. But the minutes hint at discord.
“Chairman Regensbeg explained that the individual who received the nomination would be placed on the general election ballot in November,” the minutes state. “A few members questioned the process. Chairman Regensberg answered and clarified any questions.”
Regensberg has immersed himself in politics for most of the last 20 years. He was a Democratic member of the state House of Representative from 2001 until 2005.
He lost a primary for reelection after a confrontation with state police during the 2004 legislative session.
Regensberg was away from the Capitol on a Friday night when a lawmaker moved for a call of the House, meaning all members were to be located and kept in the chamber for a vote on legislation.
State police found Regensberg in a hotel.
He said the officers beat him, snapped on the handcuffs and drove him to the Capitol while he was half-naked.
The humiliation cost him that election and perhaps two others. Regensberg lost primary races to then-state Rep. Nick Salazar in 2012 and 2014.
Salazar was an extraordinary politician in one sense. He served for 46 years in the state House of Representatives, one of America’s longer legislative careers.
In the judge’s race, Regensberg would seem to have an edge based on voter performance favoring Democrats.
He left public office riding a wave of controversy. His comeback might be an encore performance.