New Mexico held its general election on November 6, 2012, deciding 112 legislative seats. No chamber changed party control.
Highlights
- Gov. Susana Martinez (R) campaigned against Senate Democratic leaders, and Republicans gained ground there, cutting the Democratic edge from 28-14, a two-thirds majority, to 25-17. In the House, Democrats grew their majority to 38-32, up from 36-33-1 with one independent.
- Martinez's biggest election targets were Majority Leader Michael Sanchez (D) and President Pro Tem Tim Jennings (D), hit with ads calling them soft on child killers. Sanchez held Senate District 29 by about 11 points. Jennings, among the Senate's most conservative Democrats, lost his Roswell seat in Senate District 32 to Cliff Pirtle (R) by about 510 votes.
- Two other Democratic senators also lost, and one held on narrowly:
- Lee Cotter (R) unseated Mary Jane Garcia (D) by about 1,300 votes in Senate District 36.
- Mark Moores (R) beat Lisa Curtis (D) by about 13 points in Senate District 21.
- John Sapien (D) kept Senate District 9 by about 160 votes.
- In all, 8 legislators lost their seats. In the House, Democrats unseated three Republicans and an independent, while losing two seats of their own:
- Liz Thomson (D) beat Rep. Conrad James (R) by about 270 votes in House District 24.
- Nathan Cote (D) beat Rep. Ricky Little (R) by about 320 in House District 53.
- Stephanie Richard (D) beat Rep. James Hall (R) by about 330 in House District 43.
- Phillip Archuleta (D) won House District 36, where Rep. Andrew Nunez (I) finished third.
- Sharon Clahchischilliage (R) ousted Rep. Ray Begaye (D) in House District 4.
- Monica Youngblood (R) won House District 68 by about 1,250 votes after the court-drawn map moved the district out of north-central New Mexico.
- Voters approved all 8 statewide measures. Three constitutional amendments restructured the Public Regulation Commission: Amendment 2 let the Legislature raise commissioners' qualifications and passed easily, while Amendment 3, moving corporate registration out of the commission, and Amendment 4, moving insurance oversight to a separate superintendent, each passed with about 51 percent.
Legislature
- House (70 seats): 36 D, 33 R, 1 other or vacant before the election, 38 D, 32 R after; control stayed with Democrats.
- Senate (42 seats): 27 D, 15 R before the election, 25 D, 17 R after; control stayed with Democrats.
Legislative races
Ballot measures
| Measure | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Bond Question A | Bonds to make capital expenditures for certain senior citizen facility improvement. | Passed (62.52% yes) |
| Bond Question B | Bonds to make capital expenditures for public library resource acquisitions. | Passed (62.12% yes) |
| Bond Question C | Bonds to make capital expenditures for certain higher education improvements. | Passed (61.2% yes) |
| Constitutional Amendment 1 | Adds two members to the Judicial Standards Commission. | Passed (60.23% yes) |
| Constitutional Amendment 2 | Raise the qualifications required to be public regulation commissioner. | Passed (80.89% yes) |
| Constitutional Amendment 3 | Remove the chartering of corporations from the PRC to the secretary of state. | Passed (50.78% yes) |
| Constitutional Amendment 4 | Would remove insurance division from PRC. | Passed (50.75% yes) |
| Constitutional Amendment 5 | Would make the office separate from the state government. | Passed (62.04% yes) |