New Mexico Attorney General election, 2018

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New Mexico Attorney General
	Democratic primary; Republican primary; General election;
Election details
	Filing deadline: March 13, 2018
	Primary: June 5, 2018; General: November 6, 2018; Pre-election incumbent(s):; Hector Balderas (Democrat)
How to vote
	Poll times: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Voting in New Mexico
Ballotpedia analysis
	Federal and state primary competitiveness; State executive elections in 2018; Impact of term limits in 2018; State government trifectas; State government triplexes; Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018
New Mexico; executive elections
	Governor; Lieutenant governor; Attorney general; Secretary of state; Treasurer; Auditor; Public lands commissioner; Public education commissioner; Public regulation commissioner

New Mexico held an election for attorney general on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 13, 2018.

For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
For more information about the Republican primary, click here.
For more information about attorney general elections in 2018, click here.

SETTING THE STAGE
Heading into the 2018 election, the attorney general of New Mexico was Hector Balderas (D), who was first elected in 2014. Balderas announced that he would seek re-election in 2018 on May 16, 2017.
In 2018, New Mexico was under divided government. It had held this status since Gov. Susana Martinez (R) took office in 2011. New Mexico was also under divided triplex control.
In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, New Mexico was won by the Democratic candidate in 2000, 2008, 2012, and 2016, and by the Republican candidate in 2004. The widest margin of victory was Barack Obama's 15 percent margin in 2008, while the narrowest was Al Gore's 0.06 percent margin in 2000.

Candidates and election results

General election

General election for Attorney General of New Mexico

Incumbent Hector Balderas defeated Michael Hendricks and A. Blair Dunn in the general election for Attorney General of New Mexico on November 6, 2018.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Hector Balderas (D)	61.8	427,583
	Michael Hendricks (R)	33.4	231,296
	A. Blair Dunn (L)	4.8	32,931

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 691,810
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Attorney General of New Mexico

Incumbent Hector Balderas advanced from the Democratic primary for Attorney General of New Mexico on June 5, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Hector Balderas	100.0	150,515

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 150,515
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Attorney General of New Mexico

Michael Hendricks advanced from the Republican primary for Attorney General of New Mexico on June 5, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Hendricks	100.0	66,588

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 66,588
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Libertarian primary election

Libertarian primary for Attorney General of New Mexico

A. Blair Dunn advanced from the Libertarian primary for Attorney General of New Mexico on June 5, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		A. Blair Dunn	100.0	608

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 608
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

State overview

Partisan control

This section details the partisan control of state and federal positions in New Mexico heading into the 2018 elections.

Congressional delegation

Following the 2014 elections, Democrats held both U.S. Senate seats in New Mexico.
Democrats held two of the state's three U.S. House seats while Republicans held the third.

State executives

As of September 2018, Democrats held 15 of 27 state executive offices. Republicans held six, Libertarians held one, and the remaining five were held by nonpartisan officials.
The governor of New Mexico was Republican Susana Martinez. Martinez won office in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014.

State legislature

Democrats controlled both chambers of the New Mexico State Legislature. They had a 38-31 majority in the state House and a 24-18 majority in the state Senate.

Trifecta status

New Mexico was under divided government, with Democrats controlling both houses of the state legislature and Republican Susana Martinez serving as governor.

2018 elections

See also: New Mexico elections, 2018

New Mexico held elections for the following positions in 2018:

Demographics

Demographic data for New Mexico
	New Mexico	U.S.
Total population:	2,080,328	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	121,298	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	73.2%	73.6%
Black/African American:	2.1%	12.6%
Asian:	1.4%	5.1%
Native American:	9.1%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.1%	0.2%
Two or more:	3.3%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	47.4%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	84.2%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	26.3%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$44,963	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	24.7%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in New Mexico. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

As of July 2016, New Mexico's three largest cities were Albuquerque (pop. est. 560,000), Las Cruces (pop. est. 100,000), and Rio Rancho (pop. est. 96,000).^[1]

State election history

This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in New Mexico from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from New Mexico Secretary of State.

Historical elections

Presidential elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the presidential election in New Mexico every year from 2000 to 2016.

Election results (President of the United States), New Mexico 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2016	Hillary Clinton	48.3%	Donald Trump	40.0%	8.3%
2012	Barack Obama	53.0%	Mitt Romney	42.8%	10.2%
2008	Barack Obama	56.9%	John McCain	41.8%	15.1%
2004	George W. Bush	49.8%	John Kerry	49.1%	0.7%
2000	Al Gore	47.9%	George W. Bush	47.9%	0.0%

U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in New Mexico from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

Election results (U.S. Senator), New Mexico 2000-2014
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2014	Tom Udall	55.6%	Allan Weh	44.4%	11.2%
2012	Martin Heinrich	51.0%	Heather Wilson	45.3%	5.7%
2008	Tom Udall	61.3%	Steve Pearce	38.7%	22.6%
2006	Jeff Bingaman	70.6%	Allen McCulloch	29.3%	41.3%
2002	Pete Domenici	65.0%	Gloria Tristani	35.0%	30.0%
2000	Jeff Bingaman	62.7%	Bill Redmond	37.3%	25.4%

Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in New Mexico.

Election results (Governor), New Mexico 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2014	Susana Martinez	57.3%	Gary King	42.7%	14.6%
2010	Susana Martinez	53.3%	Diane Denish	46.5%	6.8%
2006	Bill Richardson	68.8%	John Dendahl	31.2%	37.6%
2002	Bill Richardson	55.5%	John Sanchez	39.0%	16.5%

Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent New Mexico in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

Congressional delegation, New Mexico 2000-2016
Year	Republicans	Republicans (%)	Democrats	Democrats (%)	Balance of power
2016	1	33.3%	2	66.7%	D+1
2014	1	33.3%	2	66.7%	D+1
2012	1	33.3%	2	66.7%	D+1
2010	1	33.3%	2	66.7%	D+1
2008	0	0.0%	3	100.0%	D+3
2006	2	66.7%	1	33.3%	R+1
2004	2	66.7%	1	33.3%	R+1
2002	2	66.7%	1	33.3%	R+1
2000	2	66.7%	1	33.3%	R+1

Trifectas, 1992-2017

A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

New Mexico Party Control: 1992-2024
Seventeen years of Democratic trifectas • No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year	92	93	94	95	96	97	98	99	00	01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24
Governor	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D
Senate	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D
House	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	R	R	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D

Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Three of 33 New Mexico counties—9 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County	Trump margin of victory in 2016	Obama margin of victory in 2012	Obama margin of victory in 2008
Colfax County, New Mexico	8.55%	2.24%	10.73%
Hidalgo County, New Mexico	6.73%	4.96%	2.92%
Valencia County, New Mexico	8.60%	2.47%	7.72%

In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton (D) won New Mexico with 48.3 percent of the vote. Donald Trump (R) received 40 percent. In presidential elections between 1912 and 2016, New Mexico voted Democratic 56 percent of the time and Republican 44 percent of the time. In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, New Mexico voted Democratic four times. The state voted Republican in 2004.^[2]

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in New Mexico. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.^[3]^[4]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 45 out of 70 state House districts in New Mexico with an average margin of victory of 29.5 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 45 out of 70 state House districts in New Mexico with an average margin of victory of 26.7 points. Clinton won nine districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.

In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 25 out of 70 state House districts in New Mexico with an average margin of victory of 24.4 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 25 out of 70 state House districts in New Mexico with an average margin of victory of 27 points. Trump won two districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.

2016 presidential results by state House district
District	Obama	Romney	2012 Margin	Clinton	Trump	2016 Margin	Party Control
1	20.96%	75.79%	R+54.8	18.04%	72.51%	R+54.5	R
2	27.47%	69.17%	R+41.7	21.96%	67.15%	R+45.2	R
3	22.91%	73.48%	R+50.6	17.17%	73.66%	R+56.5	R
4	51.61%	45.33%	D+6.3	42.79%	42.74%	D+0.1	R
5	70.17%	26.83%	D+43.3	60.70%	24.05%	D+36.6	D
6	70.21%	27.48%	D+42.7	58.64%	28.48%	D+30.2	D
7	50.49%	44.11%	D+6.4	40.92%	45.72%	R+4.8	R
8	46.36%	48.66%	R+2.3	37.51%	49.60%	R+12.1	R
9	71.00%	26.44%	D+44.6	61.37%	24.12%	D+37.2	D
10	65.21%	30.46%	D+34.8	56.93%	31.21%	D+25.7	D
11	74.16%	20.74%	D+53.4	69.71%	18.46%	D+51.2	D
12	68.74%	26.63%	D+42.1	61.46%	27.69%	D+33.8	D
13	67.68%	27.95%	D+39.7	59.39%	27.06%	D+32.3	D
14	75.95%	20.09%	D+55.9	65.37%	23.23%	D+42.1	D
15	49.95%	45.35%	D+4.6	48.43%	38.84%	D+9.6	R
16	60.23%	35.40%	D+24.8	54.22%	33.06%	D+21.2	D
17	62.55%	32.61%	D+29.9	57.98%	29.63%	D+28.3	D
18	74.99%	17.57%	D+57.4	73.69%	13.64%	D+60.1	D
19	71.55%	22.91%	D+48.6	67.73%	20.05%	D+47.7	D
20	46.26%	48.57%	R+2.3	45.05%	41.13%	D+3.9	R
21	61.08%	33.19%	D+27.9	53.96%	31.12%	D+22.8	D
22	42.30%	51.77%	R+9.5	40.33%	46.60%	R+6.3	R
23	50.61%	44.70%	D+5.9	47.86%	39.71%	D+8.1	D
24	52.10%	42.11%	D+10	47.19%	36.79%	D+10.4	D
25	60.90%	33.31%	D+27.6	57.03%	28.81%	D+28.2	D
26	62.57%	33.00%	D+29.6	55.12%	32.19%	D+22.9	D
27	43.63%	51.56%	R+7.9	43.86%	42.63%	D+1.2	R
28	43.36%	51.02%	R+7.7	43.31%	42.27%	D+1	R
29	48.16%	47.12%	D+1	45.04%	41.24%	D+3.8	R
30	50.06%	44.08%	D+6	47.75%	37.01%	D+10.7	R
31	38.29%	57.90%	R+19.6	41.78%	45.91%	R+4.1	R
32	48.95%	47.93%	D+1	43.90%	47.34%	R+3.4	D
33	57.44%	38.34%	D+19.1	55.59%	32.01%	D+23.6	D
34	67.75%	30.86%	D+36.9	64.65%	28.49%	D+36.2	D
35	58.06%	38.71%	D+19.3	54.23%	34.26%	D+20	D
36	53.29%	43.51%	D+9.8	49.35%	39.28%	D+10.1	D
37	50.09%	46.98%	D+3.1	49.32%	39.69%	D+9.6	D
38	45.97%	50.34%	R+4.4	39.87%	49.90%	R+10	R
39	53.53%	43.60%	D+9.9	48.95%	41.86%	D+7.1	D
40	69.65%	27.03%	D+42.6	60.30%	28.99%	D+31.3	D
41	74.26%	22.15%	D+52.1	64.48%	23.77%	D+40.7	D
42	77.86%	18.20%	D+59.7	69.70%	18.34%	D+51.4	D
43	51.55%	42.52%	D+9	51.63%	31.90%	D+19.7	D
44	42.34%	53.33%	R+11	38.87%	48.14%	R+9.3	R
45	75.50%	20.49%	D+55	71.68%	19.09%	D+52.6	D
46	76.11%	19.64%	D+56.5	72.91%	17.80%	D+55.1	D
47	75.23%	21.12%	D+54.1	75.51%	16.95%	D+58.6	D
48	79.43%	16.14%	D+63.3	76.07%	15.07%	D+61	D
49	48.75%	46.04%	D+2.7	39.56%	48.03%	R+8.5	R
50	54.56%	40.49%	D+14.1	49.33%	40.67%	D+8.7	D
51	34.24%	62.18%	R+27.9	29.61%	60.13%	R+30.5	R
52	62.23%	35.17%	D+27.1	62.07%	29.79%	D+32.3	D
53	48.82%	48.52%	D+0.3	48.39%	41.93%	D+6.5	R
54	32.19%	64.92%	R+32.7	25.69%	66.62%	R+40.9	R
55	29.64%	67.48%	R+37.8	24.35%	67.91%	R+43.6	R
56	34.58%	61.37%	R+26.8	29.21%	61.10%	R+31.9	R
57	45.25%	50.34%	R+5.1	39.99%	46.81%	R+6.8	R
58	43.98%	52.91%	R+8.9	36.58%	53.06%	R+16.5	R
59	29.23%	67.78%	R+38.5	23.93%	67.65%	R+43.7	R
60	42.37%	52.23%	R+9.9	38.93%	47.35%	R+8.4	R
61	32.56%	65.02%	R+32.5	29.95%	62.63%	R+32.7	R
62	19.59%	78.35%	R+58.8	18.39%	74.53%	R+56.1	R
63	49.61%	47.24%	D+2.4	36.71%	51.26%	R+14.6	D
64	24.47%	72.92%	R+48.5	20.65%	70.74%	R+50.1	R
65	79.83%	16.71%	D+63.1	67.22%	16.91%	D+50.3	D
66	24.60%	72.24%	R+47.6	21.08%	69.94%	R+48.9	R
67	37.15%	59.71%	R+22.6	27.94%	62.43%	R+34.5	R
68	47.01%	48.56%	R+1.5	43.56%	42.91%	D+0.7	R
69	68.52%	28.07%	D+40.4	56.03%	29.07%	D+27	D
70	69.54%	26.69%	D+42.9	60.23%	28.91%	D+31.3	D
Total	52.99%	42.84%	D+10.1	48.26%	40.04%	D+8.2	-
Source: Daily Kos

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms New Mexico attorney general election 2018. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

New Mexico Attorney General election, 2018 - Google News

External links

Suggest a link

New Mexico attorney general official website

Footnotes

[1] New Mexico Demographics by Cubit, "New Mexico Cities by Population," accessed September 7, 2018

[2] 270towin.com, "New Mexico," accessed August 8, 2017

[3] Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013

[4] Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017

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