On Friday, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham made New Mexico the 20th state to finalize a congressional map, and it's one of the most aggressive Democratic gerrymanders yet. The map divides oil, gas and ranch-heavy "Little Texas" among all three districts to dilute GOP votes in the southeastern portion of the state in a brazen bid to oust GOP Rep. Yvette Herrell (NM-02), the only remaining Republican office holder in the state.
The map removes GOP-heavy Roswell from the southern 2nd CD and adds most of the west side of Albuquerque, transforming Herrell's seat to a true Hispanic majority district and flipping it from Trump +12 to Biden +6. "The gerrymandered map New Mexico Democrats have proposed shows how desperate they are to try to save Nancy Pelosi’s majority," griped Herrell, who ousted Democratic Rep. Xochitl Torres Small by seven points in 2020.
Now, Democrats face the potentially harder task of actually defeating Herrell. Las Cruces Councilor Gabe Vasquez, a 37-year-old former aide to Sen. Martin Heinrich, is running with Heinrich's endorsement. But recruitment may not be over yet.
Some Democrats
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