Alamogordo NM
11-05-2026 5:44am

Democrats Win New Mexico House Supermajority as Republicans Turn on Their Own Leadership

ALBUQUERQUE — Democrats will hold a two-thirds supermajority in the New Mexico House of Representatives for the first time in decades after unseating four Republican incumbents in Tuesday's election. The results have set off a round of blame within the state GOP, much of it aimed at the party's leadership.

Democrats will control 47 of the chamber's 70 seats when the Legislature convenes Jan. 19 for a 60-day session, according to Source NM. The Albuquerque Journal reported it is the party's largest House majority since 1994.

Four GOP incumbents fall

Democrats went into the election holding a 43-25 House majority, with two seats vacant. A 47-23 split crosses the two-thirds line needed to override a governor's veto.

District

Republican incumbent

Democratic winner

HD-7 (Los Lunas)

Tanya Mirabal Moya

Rickie Gonzales

HD-38 (Elephant Butte)

Rebecca Dow

David Mooney

HD-39 (Silver City)

Luis Terrazas

Raul Turrieta

HD-57 (Rio Rancho)

Catherine Cullen

Chriselle Martinez

In every flipped district except HD-57, registered Democrats outnumber Republicans, Source NM reported. House Speaker Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque, credited both the national anti-Trump wave and state Democrats' record in office.

Republicans had at least one bright spot. Heather Scott Ellison picked up HD-4 from Democrats, according to MultiState.

Republicans point fingers

The House losses came on the same night Democrat Deb Haaland defeated former Rio Rancho Mayor Gregg Hull for governor. Within a day, Republicans were publicly blaming their own party.

Aubrey Blair Dunn, who ran for lieutenant governor this year, posted on Facebook that Haaland owed thanks to the Republican Party of New Mexico and a list of party figures. Among them were former chair Steve Pearce, Sen. Jim Townsend and former chair Amy Barela. Dunn argued the party fielded candidates too closely tied to President Trump in a state where he is unpopular. He also said independent voters broke for Democrats after the party attacked Republicans who criticized the president.

A graphic circulating among Republicans goes further, calling for every member of the party's executive committee to be fired. It lists campaign transfers that legislative candidates made to the state party and says most of those candidates lost. It also holds the party responsible for the campaign mailers and messaging. The dollar figures in the graphic could not be independently verified.

House Minority Leader Gail Armstrong of Magdalena acknowledged a disappointing night in a statement, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported. She said a supermajority means Democrats must take full ownership of the results.

Barela's shadow over the party

Much of the criticism centers on Amy Barela, who chaired the state party until a judge removed her in May.

The ruling sided with three Republican candidates, including Dunn and gubernatorial hopeful Duke Rodriguez. They argued Barela broke party rules by staying on as chair while running in a contested primary for her Otero County Commission seat. The state Supreme Court denied the party's appeal on June 10. Barela also lost that commission primary to Jonathan Emery by 46 votes, the Albuquerque Journal reported.

First Vice Chair Mike Nelson took over after her ouster. Barela quickly launched a bid to win the post back, but the State Central Committee failed to reach a quorum to elect a new chair in June, amid a boycott by many northern New Mexico members. The fight split the party largely along regional lines.

In June, Barela told Source NM the party should focus on the election and turn to party matters in December. Party officers elected in 2024 serve terms covering 2025 and 2026, so a new leadership election is due. Some Republicans now blame Barela for the November results and oppose her return. Her defenders, including party Executive Director Leticia Muñoz-Kaminski, earlier called the effort to remove her a distraction from electing Republicans.

What the supermajority means

The practical power of the House supermajority is limited for now. Overriding a veto takes two-thirds in both chambers, and Democrats kept their 10-seat Senate majority without reaching that mark. Sen. Rex Wilson, R-Ancho, held his seat against Democrat William Neil Griffin.

With Haaland, a Democrat, taking the governor's office, veto fights between the Legislature and the executive are also less likely. The 60-day session begins Jan. 19.

For Republicans, the next test is internal: choosing who leads the party into 2028.

Sources

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