Alamogordo NM
10-20-2026 8:16pm

A day after quitting the GOP, Zac Anaya says no one in either party is off limits

RIO RANCHO — One day after announcing he had left the Republican Party, former GOP chair hopeful Zac Anaya said in a live interview Tuesday with Anthony Lucero that leaving the party has freed him to go after elected officials in both parties — including fellow conservatives he says he once went easy on.

"Independent doesn't mean I'm no longer a conservative," Anaya said. "It means that I'm able to vocalize my conservative values more than I would as a member of the Republican Party."

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The 33-year-old Rio Rancho businessman announced Monday evening on social media that he had given up on the Republican Party of New Mexico and would register as an independent, 15 days before the Nov. 3 general election. In the live interview with host Anthony, he expanded on that post, took aim at party insiders over the governor's race and left the door open to returning — if the party changes its leadership.

Doubling down on Hull

In Monday's post, Anaya wrote that one of the most qualified Republicans to seek the governorship in a generation was struggling to raise money, without naming him. On Tuesday he named him: GOP nominee Gregg Hull, whom Anaya called "my mayor."

Anaya called Hull the most overqualified Republican gubernatorial candidate in at least 20 years and sharply criticized his Democratic opponent, Deb Haaland. He blamed Hull's fundraising gap on party insiders who he said resist Hull's "common sense ideas."

"They might do it on social media, but they're not doing it at a statewide monetary level," Anaya said of Republican support for Hull.

He went further, predicting Hull would lose by 11 points or more. "I hate to say that because I love Greg," he said.

The fundraising gap Anaya pointed to is real. Haaland remains well ahead in money according to reports filed Oct. 13. Hull raised about $634,000 in the latest period and roughly $1.5 million for the general election. His campaign has said the numbers reflect a focus on in-state donors — 99% of his donors are New Mexicans — and has cited donor fatigue after the June primary.

"No holds barred"

Anaya said that as an independent he would keep publishing political commentary and that officials of both parties are now fair game.

"If you're taking money, if you're married to a lobbyist, if you are making questionable votes, it's time to go after you," he said.

That line echoes his House District 60 primary campaign against state Rep. Joshua Hernandez (R-Rio Rancho), which Anaya lost in June. During that race Anaya filed a State Ethics Commission complaint accusing Hernandez of failing to disclose the lobbying clients of his partner and business associate; Hernandez called it a political stunt.

Anaya said Tuesday that Republican leaders, including Gail Armstrong and Rebecca Dow, called him during the primary and urged him to "leave Josh alone," and that he eased off as a result. He said Hernandez was one of five Republicans who voted for the universal child care bill, which Anaya later challenged in a lawsuit that the New Mexico Supreme Court rejected in July.

"That's not happening anymore," he said. "If you are corrupt, if you are making horrible votes, we're coming after you."

The chair fight in the background

As 2nd Life Media reported Monday, Anaya's exit is the latest fallout from the yearlong fight over former party chair Amy Barela, who was removed by a court in May. Anaya briefly ran to replace her in June as part of the northern bloc opposing her, then stepped aside to avoid splitting that vote.

Anaya did not mention Barela by name Tuesday. But his conditions for coming back line up with the leadership question still hanging over the party, which enters the election under interim chair Mike Nelson and is set to pick a permanent chair after Nov. 3.

Anaya predicted a "reckoning" for Republicans after the election. "If the party can right itself with a proper chairperson and a new platform, then I may very well come back," he said.

Both parties, both extremes

Anaya said he left the Democratic Party after college because it had gone "a little wacko" and now sees Republicans doing the same — campaigning on conservative values and abandoning them in office. "At the end of the day, they love to spend our money," he said.

He described both parties as captured by their extremes, citing gender-related medical care for minors on the left and treating everything President Donald Trump says as "gospel truth" on the right. Most Americans, he said, sit somewhere in between.

He argued that Ronald Reagan and John F. Kennedy would both belong to the Forward Party today.

The host, KALHRadio.org’s Anthony Lucero for streaming Alamogordo Town News, compared Anaya's move to that of former Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima, who he said had voiced similar frustrations with the Democratic Party and endorsed Hull.

What's next for Anaya

Anaya said he plans to spend more time with his wife, children and faith — a theme from Monday's post — while publishing opinion pieces on his website, zacanaya.com, and social media. 

He said he submits columns to newspapers across the state but that they have not run them. He has been extended an invitation to submit articles to us going forward. 

He closed by drawing on his recovery from addiction, which he has discussed publicly. 

"As somebody who is in recovery, I've learned that you have to admit the mistakes that you've made, admit that you're powerless, and surrender to a higher power," he said. "No politician is going to save you, no political party is going to save you."

Listen to  the full interview: Zac Anaya on leaving the Republican Party

Read Monday's story: Former GOP chair hopeful Zac Anaya quits Republican Party two weeks before Election Day

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