Smith wins nomination for District 5 Board
Republican will face Pyskoty in November; Carbón-Gaul gets nod for probate judge
James Smith won the Republican nomination to represent District 5 on the Bernalillo County Board of Commissioners.
Smith, a retired teacher who was appointed to the District 5 seat on the commission in March after serving four terms in the New Mexico House of Representatives, defeated Natasha Hadrych-Rosier, a certified radiation therapist, with 72 percent of the vote.
Smith told the Journal he felt confident going into primary day voting.
“Being appointed to the commission certainly got me some publicity, and the Journal endorsement helped,” Smith said. “I’ve never won a race by this kind of number, so I’m pretty excited about it.”
District 5 covers the East Mountains, Four Hills and part of the Northeast Heights.
Smith had said during the campaign that he intends to support the Sheriff’s Office with the means to fight crime, which would include hiring more deputies, while Hadrych-Rosier had said job growth and education were her top priorities.
Attempts to contact Hadrych-Rosier late Tuesday were unsuccessful.
Smith will face Charlene Pyskoty in November’s general election. Pyskoty was running unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Incumbent Commissioner Debbie O’Malley will get the nod as the Democratic nominee for the District 1 seat as she ran unopposed on the ballot.
Since there are no Republicans in the race, barring a successful write-in campaign, O’Malley will retain her seat for a second term.
O’Malley served as an Albuquerque city councilor from 2003 to 2013.
Two longtime estate attorneys faced each other on the Democratic ballot to become the next Bernalillo County probate judge.
Cristy J. Carbón-Gaul defeated Lawrence W. Kay with 72 percent of the vote.
There are no Republicans in the race. Barring a successful write-in campaign, the victor in Tuesday’s primary would win the post in the general election.
A part-time position, the probate court helps individuals obtain legal authority to act on behalf of a deceased person’s estate.