Endorsement: Alamogordo Needs a Leader Again at the Roundhouse, Grace Nagamine Is That Leader

True Conservatives believe in results over rhetoric, accountability for public money, and leaders who answer to their neighbors rather than to political machines.

By those standards, the best choice in House District 51 this year is not the Republican on the ballot. It is independent, Grace Nagamine.

What real leadership looked like

Alamogordo doesn’t have to imagine what effective representation looks like. We once had it.

Ron Griggs served as our mayor, ran a local business, and then represented Otero County in the state Senate for more than a decade.

He was a Republican in a Democratic Legislature, and he still delivered:

• Wildfire prevention: In 2023, his bill banning prescribed burns on Red Flag warning days became law. Griggs credited the Legislature with passing it by unanimous, bipartisan vote.

• Economic development: He sponsored legislation lowering taxes on construction costs for large economic development projects, and legislation letting more small restaurants sell spirits.• Infrastructure: Local coverage noted his focus on job creation and his success securing capital funding for roads, public infrastructure, and other district projects.

Griggs never stopped being a conservative. He also never confused being loud with being effective. He built relationships across the aisle because that is how real dollars beyond standard outlays, and laws reach rural New Mexico.

Since his departure, that kind of true collaborative leadership has been missing from Alamogordo’s delegation.

Four years of a different approach

Rep. John Block has held the House District 51 seat since 2023. He moved here and flipped his alliances and recreated an identity taking advantage of local ideologies, (he interned for Martin Heinrich Democrat and worked for the Liberal Mayor Keller Campaign in Albuquerque while younger.) He has since whitewashed those facts and removed them from his public profiles. 

His defenders say a Republican can’t get anything done in a Democratic Legislature. Senator Griggs proved otherwise for years, and Block’s own colleagues prove it today:

• Other Republicans passed bills. In 2026, 25 of 26 House Republicans had a bill signed into law.

• He ranked near the bottom. Block ranked 19th of 26 by the share of his measures that passed.

• He led none of his signed bills. Three signed bills carry his name, and other legislators led all three.

• His own bills died early. All 33 measures he brought himself failed, most in their first committee.

His mailer claims more than $11 million for Alamogordo and Otero County. That is the standard share of capital outlay every House member receives, added up over four years. Block chose his projects, then voted against the bills that funded them in 2023, 2025, and 2026.

In 2025 he also introduced a new 3.75% tax on renewable energy production. The free-market Southwest Public Policy Institute opposed it as harmful to consumers. That cost would have landed on PNM ratepayers, the same families who opened doubled and tripled PNM bills this year.

The difference is not ideology. Griggs and Block are both Republicans.

The difference is that one treated the Legislature as a place to build results for Alamogordo, and the other treats it as a stage for partisan fights.

Otero County has paid for that in lost opportunities.

Grace Nagamine: back to results

Grace Nagamine is a lifelong Alamogordo resident and a member of Mountain View Church for more than a decade. She survived homelessness and domestic violence, worked as a certified nursing assistant, cared for family, and founded Royal Angels to serve children with special needs.

Her platform is specific and in writing:

• Energy: She released a policy brief backing responsible oil and gas production and defending the permanent fund savings law.

• Holloman and veterans: She comes from an Air Force family and has made housing for military families a priority.

• Infrastructure: She has pledged to work with city leadership to bring state dollars to the roads, water lines, and sewer lines neglected for two decades.

• Transparency: She will publish every capital outlay request she makes.

• Partnership: She has committed to working with any legislator, Republican or Democrat, who will help Otero County, including regional partnership with District 33 state leadership and other leaders within the state

Grace Policy Statements:
https://graceforhd51.org/policy-statements/

Grace Platform and Policy Pillars:
https://graceforhd51.org/issues

That is the Griggs model: local roots, a plan, and the willingness to work with anyone to get it done.

Republicans, Democrats, and independents together

Nagamine’s support crosses party lines, the way a district representative’s should.

For those in the conservative community that are not convinced two Republicans who led Alamogordo City Hall are among those backing her.

Dr. Stephanie Hernandez, a Republican and former Alamogordo City Manager:

“I’m tired of divisive politics. New Mexico has fallen behind in too many areas, and I believe much of that comes from our inability to work together. Some of the deepest divisions aren’t even between political parties anymore. They’re within our own parties. We’ve become so focused on our differences that we’ve lost sight of the goals we share.

Somewhere along the way, we’ve confused fighting with leadership. Having served in local government, I know firsthand that progress requires relationships, cooperation, and the willingness to work with people who don’t always share your views. You can stand firm in your convictions without standing in the way of progress.

I know Grace Nagamine. She’s a fighter, but she also understands the value of teamwork. She knows the difference between fighting for people and simply fighting with people. Grace is willing to put differences aside, find common ground, and work toward what matters most: improving the lives of the people she represents. That’s why I’m supporting her.”

— Dr. Stephanie Hernandez, Republican, former Alamogordo City Manager

Susan Payne, a Republican and former Mayor of Alamogordo:

“For years, I’ve watched Santa Fe fail to address the issues that matter most to New Mexico families: our children’s education, their safety, and the growing concerns about crime in our communities.

As a former mayor, I know firsthand the consequences of failed policies. I had to lead our community through one of its darkest moments, the death of a police officer in the line of duty. It’s a tragedy that stays with you and one that strengthened my belief that our state must do better. Yet we continue to operate under a constitutional amendment that I believe has made it harder to hold dangerous criminals accountable and keep them off our streets.

Year after year, we hear the same promises, witness the same political division, and hope that something will finally change. But the issues remain, and our communities continue to pay the price.

That’s why I believe it’s time for a different approach. I believe Grace has what it takes to be a truly independent voice in Santa Fe. Someone who can work across party lines, find common ground, and put the needs of New Mexicans ahead of political agendas.

We cannot afford another year of the same excuses and the same results. Our state deserves leaders who recognize where we’ve fallen short and, more importantly, are willing to do something about it.

I’m supporting Grace because I believe it’s time to stop talking about change and start making it happen.”

— Susan Payne, Republican, former Mayor of Alamogordo

Republicans have joined Democrats and independents knocking on doors for her across the district.

They don’t agree on everything. But they agree Alamogordo deserves a representative who delivers - and are supportive of Grace Nagamine. With an army of over 100 individuals knocking on doors, dropping flyers and making phone calls she has support from grass roots neighbors not big corporations nor multiple major PACs. 

The fair objection

Some conservatives will say a vote for an independent weakens the Republican caucus, and that Block reliably votes the conservative line. 

But a reliable no vote is not the same as getting results for the local Alamogordo community. One House seat will not change which party controls the chamber

It will decide whether Alamogordo has an effective voice inside it.

Our endorsement

Alamogordo once had leaders who put this community ahead of party fights. It’s time to have one once again

Grace Nagamine is the voice Alamogordo needs now.

Early voting is underway, and Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Vote today.

This editorial was approved unanimously by the New Mexico Conservative News editorial advisory board, whose members include two Republicans, two Democrats, one Libertarian, and one member who declined to state a party.

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