Leg endorsements: Trujillo, Herrera, Luchini, Lossing
Voters in District 24, which covers a chunk of mid- and south Santa Fe, have a solid slate from which to choose in replacing retiring Sen. Nancy Rodriguez. In this race, Linda Trujillo, a former state representative and Santa Fe Public Schools Board of Education member, is the best choice.
A former Head Start teacher, attorney and superintendent of the state Regulation and Licensing Department, Trujillo would bring varied life and job experience to the Senate, including an understanding of the transformative power of education. At Regulation and Licensing, she helped build the framework for the legalization of adult-use cannabis while also making it simpler for professionals to obtain state licenses with less red tape. She was a key player in early efforts to expand early childhood education, both at the local and state level. In the House, she voted for the red flag law that would allow family members and law enforcement to remove guns from high-risk individuals at risk of harming themselves or others.
In the Senate, she wants to improve the supply of affordable housing, ensure reproductive rights, enact commonsense gun laws and increase access to health care. She also would support legislation to guarantee paid family medical leave, a measure that came close to passing in 2024. Currently, she doesn’t support opening primary elections to all voters, but that is a position we hope to persuade her to change. With the exception of open primaries, all three candidates have similar stances on issues. A vote in this race is more about how candidates will approach the job and the skills they bring to making policy. Trujillo has demonstrated a knowledge of the legislative process that will ensure she can translate intentions into laws to improve the lives of New Mexicans. For the Senate, District 24, The New Mexican endorses Linda Trujillo.
State House of Representatives
District 41: Rep. Susan Herrera, a Democrat, is running for reelection for her seat, which she first won in 2018. She has an impressive list of accomplishments, including leading the charge to stop predatory lending in the state, increasing teacher pay and bringing essential resources to her farflung, rural district. She helped create the Rural Library Endowment Fund, now at $25 million, and has brought $30 million in funding for water projects in District 41. If reelected, she hopes to sponsor legislation to increase the Child Tax Credit for the poorest families and work for greater investments in clean water, programs to battle drug abuse and assistance to grandparents raising grandchildren. For state House, District 41, The New Mexican endorses Susan Herrera.
District 43: Democratic Rep. Christine Chandler is unopposed in the primary, but there is a contest between Chris Luchini and Phillip Mach for the Libertarian nomination to the House of Representatives. We appreciate that Luchini and Mach stepped up to provide competition in November, which benefits voters because there is an actual debate of issues and concerns. Luchini, as the campaign manager in Los Alamos County for Gary Johnson’s presidential run, generated the highest vote percentage of any county in the U.S. for his candidate. His ability to organize and persuade voters will make the fall race more substantive, especially when he and Chandler discuss a few of his innovative proposals. Those include greater Xeriscaping of all public parks to reduce water use and establishing $50 million in tax credits to encourage the purchase of gun safes. For state House, District 43, in the Libertarian primary, The New Mexican endorses Chris Luchini.
District 50: Rep. Matthew McQueen, a Democrat, is unopposed in the primary, but the GOP will field a candidate come November. The primary race features Edgewood Mayor Kenneth Brennan and Wendy Lossing, a nurse from Stanley. Either candidate will offer voters a stark choice in contrast with the incumbent. Lossing, who serves as an elected member of the Central Tri-County Soil and Water Conservation District, also has been a Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteer, giving her an understanding of how children are at risk in New Mexico. She is against abortion, as is her primary opponent, and also supports a sharp cut in income taxes. This is essentially a pick-’em for voters, but of the two conservatives, Lossing’s background as a nurse and volunteer would be useful in the Legislature. For state House, District 50, in the Republican primary, The New Mexican endorses Wendy Lossing.