Walt Rubel: Dems’ presidential circus will roll through NM in 2028

New Mexico Democrats, get ready to be courted.

It was announced last week that New Mexico will be the fourth state in the nation to vote in the 2028 Democratic primary election for president. South Carolina will go first, followed by Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Michigan and Virginis.

We will be among the six states where voters will have the opportunity to whittle down the field before Super Tuesday, when 16 states hold elections.

The six states selected will, “ensure our nominee can appeal to broad swaths of the electorate,” and “allow voters, not money, but voters to be the ultimate decider,” DNC Chairman Ken Martin said. Translation: campaign ads are cheap in the Albuquerque TV market.

We’ll be getting lots of those. And lots of high-level visits and speeches. Don’t be surprised if the Junior Livestock Auction at next year’s Southern New Mexico State Fair and Rodeo includes bidders who are seeking the highest office in the land, followed by a trail of reporters and aides.

If you are somebody who hates politics and just wants it all to go away, I’m kind of surprised you’re reading this, but thanks. And, you have my sympathies. This is going to be a long two years. It’s going to be everywhere you turn.

For the rest of us, it will be a terrific opportunity to showcase the best aspects of our state, while at the same time educating powerful leaders on the areas where the federal government is letting us down.

I hope presidential candidates stumping in our state will take the time to visit our hospitals and healthcare clinics to see for themselves how challenging it is now, and how much more difficult it will get when Medicaid cuts passed in the Big Beautiful Bill take effect after the upcoming midterm elections.

“Making New Mexico an early primary state will help put our state on the national stage, increase investment in our communities, expand our tourism economy and give New Mexico a stronger voice in shaping the politics of our nation,” Gov. Michelle Lojan Grisham’s office said in a press release.

The reason for our selection is pretty clear. Support for Democrats among Hispanic voters declined from 63 percent in the 2020 election to about 55 percent in 2024. Democrats know they need to get that margin back up if they want to regain power. 

During the past several years, the only time national news has come to the southern border was during immigration surges when the situation was out of control. TV news loves compelling video; and images of young, male immigrants clashing with Border Patrol agents, or of young children with hunger and desperation in their eyes, gave TV crews from both teams plenty of footage. This may give us a chance for a more accurate portrayal..

The candidates will all be coming here to ask for our votes. We shouldn’t just give them away. We should ensure that whoever earns those votes leaves here with a full understanding of what our challenges are and how they can help us to address them.

To be clear, I still think it’s a dumb system. Everybody should vote at the same time in the primary election, just like we do in the general election.


Walter Rubel can be reached at [email protected].

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