2008 United States House of Representatives elections in New Mexico

Overview

Match-up summary

District 1

This district includes the central area of New Mexico, in and around Albuquerque. An open seat, CQ Politics forecast the race as 'No Clear Favorite'. The Rothenberg Political Report rated it 'Pure Toss-Up'. The Cook Political Report ranked it 'Lean Democratic'. :Martin Heinrich (D) (campaign website) :Darren White (R) (campaign website) The 2006 race between incumbent Republican Heather Wilson and Democratic state Attorney General Patricia Madrid was a cliffhanger, with Wilson being reelected by 861 votes. John Kerry had narrowly won the district with 52% in 2004 (CPVI=D+2). With the retirement of longtime U.S. Senator Pete Domenici, Wilson ran and lost as a candidate for the Republican nomination in the race for an open U.S. Senate seat, leaving this an open seat. The Democratic nominee was Martin Heinrich (former Albuquerque City Councilor). The Republican nominee was Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White. In the general election, Heinrich defeated White by a margin of 11%. When sworn into Congress in January 2009, Heinrich became the first Democrat to ever represent this district in the House.

• Race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• Campaign contributions from OpenSecrets
• White (R) vs Heinrich (D) graph of collected poll results from Pollster.com

Primary elections

General election

Predictions

District 2

This district covers the southern half of the state of New Mexico, including Las Cruces and Roswell. CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Leans Republican'. The Rothenberg Political Report rated it 'Pure Toss-Up'. The Cook Political Report ranked it 'Republican Toss Up'.

Republican incumbent Steve Pearce won his party's nomination over Heather Wilson for the U.S. Senate, leaving this an open seat. This district usually votes Republican. George W. Bush won the district 58% to 42% over John Kerry in 2004 (CPVI=R+6). Nevertheless, Democratic nominee Harry Teague defeated Republican Edward R. Tinsely III in the general election and became the first Democrat to represent this district since 1981.

• Race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• Campaign contributions from OpenSecrets

Candidates

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Texas Tech University Harry Teague (D)

Teague is a Hobbs business owner, civic leader and former Lea County Commissioner.

• Harry Teague for Congress official campaign website

Edward R. Tinsley III (R)

Tinsley is a restaurateur.

• Ed Tinsley for Congress official campaign website

Primary elections

General election

Predictions

District 3

This district covers the northern half of the state of New Mexico, including the capital, Santa Fe. An open seat, CQ Politics forecast the race as 'Safe Democrat', as did The Rothenberg Political Report and The Cook Political Report.

• Dan East (R)
• Ben R. Luján (D)
• Carol Miller (I) Democratic incumbent Tom Udall won his party's nomination for Pete Domenici's open U.S. Senate seat,. The Democrats tend to hold the advantage in the district: John Kerry received 54% of the vote there (CPVI=D+6) in 2004. The Democratic nominee was State Public Regulation Commissioner Ben R. Luján. Luján's father serves as Speaker of the New Mexico House of Representatives. The Republican nominee was small business owner Dan East. Carol Miller, a 1997/1998 Green Party candidate, was seeking the seat as an independent. Luján won the three-way race fairly easily and was sworn into Congress in January 2009.
• Dan East's campaign website
• Ben R. Luján's campaign website
• Carol Miller's campaign website
• Race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• Campaign contributions from OpenSecrets

Primary elections

General election

Predictions

References

Specific

General

• 2008 Competitive House Race Chart The Cook Political Report, October 13, 2008.
• 2008 House Ratings The Rothenberg Political Report, October 14, 2008

References

1. [http://www.sos.state.nm.us/pdf/2008Calendar_Primary.pdf 2008 Primary Election Calendar] ''New Mexico Secretary of State''
2. [https://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/2008/2008Stat.htm#21 2008 Election Statistics]
3. "abqtrib.com".
4. [http://www.currentargus.com/ci_7149214 currentargus.com]
5. [http://www.lcsun-news.com/electioncentral/ci_9650380 FINAL RESULTS: June 3 primary election] {{Webarchive. link. (2008-10-13 ''Las Cruces Sun-News'', June 20, 2008)
6. (6 November 2006). "2008 Competitive House Race Chart". [[The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter.
7. (2 November 2006). "2008 House Ratings". The Rothenberg Political Report.
8. (6 November 2008). "2008 House". Sabato's Crystal Ball.
9. (7 November 2008). "Battle for the House of Representatives". Real Clear Politics.
10. "Race Ratings Chart: House". Congressional Quarterly Inc.
11. [http://www.alamogordonews.com/news/ci_7194286 alamogordonews.com]
12. [http://kob.com/article/stories/S250543.shtml?cat=519 kob.com]
13. [http://www.lcsun-news.com/electioncentral/ci_9650380 FINAL RESULTS: June 3 primary election] {{Webarchive. link. (2008-10-13 ''Las Cruces Sun-News'', June 20, 2008)
14. [https://web.archive.org/web/20071113100809/http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/udall-to-run-for-domenicis-senate-seat-2007-11-10.html thehill.com]
15. [http://www.lcsun-news.com/ci_8313411 lcsun-news.com]
16. [http://www.lcsun-news.com/electioncentral/ci_9650380 FINAL RESULTS: June 3 primary election] {{Webarchive. link. (2008-10-13 ''Las Cruces Sun-News'', June 20, 2008)