October 26 – Editor’s note: This is part of a series of stories the Journal is writing about competitive legislative races in the 2024 general election.
Financially, it’s a neck-and-neck race to win a statehouse seat in north Albuquerque. Politics? The voters will have to decide that.
The city’s only Republican seat in the House of Representatives is up for grabs this year after Rep. Bill Rehm, who has held the seat since 2006, retired.
Democrat Vicky Estrada-Bustillo and Republican Nicole Chavez are the two candidates vying for the District 31 open House seat.
The district includes northeastern Albuquerque, ranging more or less from Elena to Paseo del Norte, and also includes parts of the Tanoan community.
Chavez describes himself as a moderate Republican and knows personally the impact of crime in New Mexico; her son was killed in a shooting in 2015.
Estrada-Bstillillo said she is deeply rooted in the Northeast Heights community and has a background in natural resource management, which has taught her how to solve complex problems.
The Journal interviewed both candidates to get a taste of the race.
Red or blue?
Chavez said when she knocks on doors, she sees people with conservative values, even though redistricting has made the area less red. She said it is important to maintain a Republican presence representing Albuquerque in the Roundhouse.
“I don’t think we need a one-sided Democratic delegation that’s just Bernalillo County,” she said.
Estrada-Bstillillo said there are many people who don’t feel represented in District 31. She said people want a problem solver who works across party lines.
“I think that’s much more important to them than the party relationship, because I think they’re tired of the extremes,” she said.
Tackling crime
Both candidates said crime and public safety are among their top priorities, as are health care and education. However, they propose several solutions to address the problems.
On crime, Chavez said the state must hold criminals accountable. She said the state should provide bail and end catch and release. She also said she wants stiffer sentences for violent repeat offenders.
“If we don’t hold them accountable, their behavior becomes more and more dangerous, and I think that’s what we’re seeing,” Chavez said.
She added that education, vocational and skills training should be made mandatory for inmates.
Estrada-Bstillillo also said the state must address the revolving door problem, but do so by putting more money into the courts, improving the recruitment and retention of police officers and ensuring judges impose harsher sentences.
However, she said more time in prison does not deter criminals. She said the state needs prevention and drug rehabilitation systems.
“We can’t lock ourselves out of it,” Estrada-Bstillillo said.
Campaign controversy
One detail in Chavez’s campaign that is drawing some attention is her educational status. In previous Journal questionnaires — in 2022 and earlier this year before the primaries — Chavez listed her education as a bachelor’s degree in business administration. However, in the Journal’s 2024 general election questionnaire, she said she is still pursuing that degree.
Santa Fe New Mexican opinion writer Milan Simonich highlighted the error in a column earlier this month, calling it a lie in a high-profile House race.
Chavez told the Journal she previously expected to graduate in September 2024, but had to move her final classes to another semester due to full-time work and campaigning.
“So I wanted to make sure I corrected that myself and was completely honest,” she said.
Estrada-Bstillillo said it is no small matter to lie about education, and also raised an aggravated charge against Chavez that Estrada-Bstillillo claims her opponent has been “downplayed.”
“Character matters, and I know I want a representative who I know I can count on to tell the truth,” she said.
Fundraising
Estrada-Bustillo and Chavez are neck-and-neck with their fundraising efforts, both raising about $183,000 as of Thursday.
Where their money comes from varies. Chavez has most of her funding coming from individuals and other candidates or officeholders, while Estrada-Bstillillo has almost half of her collection coming from political committees.
The New Mexico House Republican Campaign Political Action Committee is Chavez’s top donor, besides herself, with $26,590 in contributions. Rehm — who is retiring the seat Chavez is vying for — also sent $5,500 to Chavez.
Other notable donors include oil and gas companies, such as Chevron, Marathon Oil, Devon Energy, Murphy Petroleum and Jalapeno Corp.
For Estrada-Bistillo, the Speaker Fund, a Democratic legislative campaign committee, sent the most money with donations worth nearly $62,000, and a slew of Democrats also contributed to Estrada-Bstillo’s campaign.
Other top donors include local unions such as the Albuquerque Teachers Federation and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
