New Mexico gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2014

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New Mexico Gubernatorial and Lieutenant Gubernatorial Election

Primary Date:
June 3, 2014

General Election Date:
November 4, 2014

November 4 Election Winners:
Gov. Susana Martinez Republican Party
Lt. Gov. John Sanchez Republican Party
Incumbents prior to election:
Gov. Susana Martinez Republican Party
Lt. Gov. John Sanchez Republican Party
Susana Martinez
John Sanchez
New Mexico State Executive Elections
Top Ballot
Governor/Lieutenant GovernorSecretary of StateAttorney General
Down Ballot
Treasurer, Auditor, Public Service Commissioner, Education Commissioner

Flag of New Mexico.png

The New Mexico gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Governor Susana Martinez (R) and Lieutenant Governor John Sanchez (R) ran successfully for re-election. Martinez and Sanchez faced the Democratic ticket of Gary King and Debra Haaland in the general election. The gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial candidates for each party were voted on as single tickets rather than separate candidates in the general election. Martinez and Sanchez won in the general election.

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. New Mexico utilizes a closed primary process; participation in each party's primary is limited to registered party members.[1][2][3]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Candidates

General election

Republican Party Susana Martinez/John Sanchez- IncumbentsGreen check mark transparent.png
Democratic Party Gary King/Debra Haaland[4]

Disqualified

Democratic Party Marie Julienne[5]

Lost in primary

Democratic Party Lawrence Rael - President of the New Mexico Green Chamber of Commerce.[6]
Democratic Party Alan Webber - Santa Fe businessman[7]
Democratic Party Howie Morales - State Senator[8]
Democratic Party Linda Lopez - State Senator[9]
Democratic Party Mario Martinez Write-in[10]
Democratic Party Phillip Chavez Write-in[10]

Declined candidates

Democratic Party Tim Keller - State Senator[11]

Results

General election

Governor and Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngSusana Martinez/John A. Sanchez Incumbent 57.2% 293,443
     Democrat Gary King/Debra Haaland 42.8% 219,362
Total Votes 512,805
Election results via New Mexico Secretary of State

Primary election

Republican primary

Gubernatorial

Republican PartyIncumbent Susana Martinez was uncontested in the primary.

Lieutenant gubernatorial

Republican PartyIncumbent John Sanchez was uncontested in the primary.

Democratic primary

Gubernatorial
Governor of New Mexico, Democratic Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngGary King 35% 43,918
Alan Webber 22.7% 28,406
Lawrence Rael 19.8% 24,878
Howie Morales 14.2% 17,863
Linda Lopez 8.2% 10,288
Mario Martinez 0% 16
Phillip Chavez 0% 2
Total Votes 125,371
Election results via New Mexico Secretary of State.
Lieutenant gubernatorial

Democratic Party Challenger Debra Haaland was uncontested in the primary.

Race background

Campaign finance lawsuit

In the summer of 2014, Democratic candidate Gary King faced accusations of accepting excessive contributions following his primary election victory. Secretary of State Dianna Duran (R) directed King's campaign staff to deposit $10,900 in excessive contributions to the state elections fund by August 4. The order focused on $10,400 from a couple in Taos and $500 from a Santa Fe resident that pushed King's campaign over the $5,200 limit for the primary.[12]

King filed a lawsuit with the New Mexico Supreme Court contesting the secretary's order. He claimed that the contributions were acceptable as they would be used to eliminate his campaign's debt from the primary. King also criticized Duran, saying, "One of my real complaints in this is the secretary of state is using her office to try and steal the election for Gov. Martinez." His lawsuit also stated that Martinez and other candidates had gathered contributions exceeding $5,200 ahead of the primary.[12] On August 14, Duran issued a letter to King stating that he could exceed the contribution limit for the primary election in order to pay down campaign debts.[13]

Polls

General election

New Mexico Governor's Race 2014 - Martinez vs. King
Poll Susana Martinez * (R) Gary King (D)Undecided/OtherMargin of errorSample size
Albuquerque Journal
(October 21-23, 2014)
53%38%9%+/-4614
New York Times/CBS News/YouGov
(October 16-23, 2014)
50%38%12%+/-6962
Gravis Marketing
(September 27-October 1, 2014)
48%44%8%+/-4727
Rasmussen Reports
(September 22-23, 2014)
50%37%13%+/-4830
Albuquerque Journal
(September 9-11, 2014)
54%36%10%+/-4603
Albuquerque Journal
(August 12-14, 2014)
50%41%9%+/-4606
Rasmussen Reports
(July 21-22, 2014)
43%43%14%+/-4860
Public Policy Polling
(March 20-23, 2014)
47%42%11%+/-3.8674
Public Policy Polling
(July 13-16, 2012)
51%39%10%+/-3.6724
AVERAGES 49.56% 39.78% 10.67% +/-4.16 733.33
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].


Primary and hypothetical match-ups

New Mexico Governor's Race 2014 - Martinez vs. Lopez
Poll Susana Martinez Linda LopezNot sureMargin of errorSample size
Public Policy Polling
(March 20-23, 2014)
50%36%15%+/-3.8674
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].
New Mexico Governor's Race 2014 - Martinez vs. Morales
Poll Susana Martinez Howie MoralesNot sureMargin of errorSample size
Public Policy Polling
(March 20-23, 2014)
38%34%17%+/-3.8674
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].
New Mexico Governor's Race 2014 - Martinez vs. Rael
Poll Susana Martinez Lawrence RaelNot sureMargin of errorSample size
Public Policy Polling
(March 20-23, 2014)
47%36%17%+/-3.8674
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].


New Mexico Governor's Race 2014 - Martinez vs. Balderas
Poll Susana Martinez Hector BalderasNot sureMargin of errorSample size
Public Policy Polling
(July 13-16, 2012)
50%37%13%+/-3.6724
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].

Note: An asterisk (*) denotes incumbent status.

Campaign media

Gary King

Gary King ad: Family

Susana Martinez

Susana Martinez ad: Good To Be The King
Susana Martinez ad: No Regrets
Susana Martinez ad: Insider Deals

Ad spending

At the beginning of September, Martinez held a significant fundraising and ad spending advantage over King. The Martinez campaign spent $1.7 million to air 3,700 TV ads through September 8, compared to a $400,000 ad buy for 800 ads by the King campaign. Martinez also received support from the Republican Governors Association, which spent $400,000 to attack King in 700 ads by early September. Martinez's clear advantage on the air was symbolic of her fundraising advantage with the Republican incumbent receiving 24 times more contributions than King at the beginning of September.[14]

Voter turnout

Political scientist Michael McDonald's United States Elections Project studied voter turnout in the 2014 election by looking at the percentage of eligible voters who headed to the polls. McDonald used voting-eligible population (VEP), or the number of eligible voters independent of their current registration status, to calculate turnout rates in each state on November 4. He also incorporated ballots cast for the highest office in each state into his calculation. He estimated that 81,687,059 ballots were cast in the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, representing 35.9 percent of the VEP.[15] By comparison, 61.6 percent of VEP voted in the 2008 presidential election and 58.2 percent of VEP voted in the 2012 presidential election.[16]

Quick facts

  • According to PBS Newshour, voter turnout in the 2014 midterms was the lowest since the 1942 midterms, which took place during the nation's involvement in World War II.[17]
  • Forty-three states and the District of Columbia failed to surpass 50 percent turnout in McDonald's analysis.
  • The three states with the lowest turnout according to McDonald's analysis were Texas (28.3 percent), Tennessee (28.6 percent), and Indiana (28.8 percent).
  • Maine (58.5 percent), Wisconsin (56.5 percent), and Colorado (54.5 percent) were the three states with the highest turnout.
  • There were only 12 states that increased voter turnout in 2014 compared to the 2010 midterm elections.[18]

Note: Information from the United States Elections Project was last updated on December 16, 2014.

Key deadlines

Deadline Event
March 11, 2014 Candidate filing deadline for primary
June 3, 2014 Primary election
June 26, 2014 Filing deadline for independent and minor party candidates
November 4, 2014 General election
November 25, 2014 State canvassing of election results
January 1, 2015 Inauguration day for state executive officers

Campaign finance

Governor/Lt. Governor (general election)

Comprehensive donor information for this election has been collected by Follow the Money. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $10,539,527 during the election. This information was last updated on March 23, 2015.[19]

Campaign Contribution Totals
Candidate Office Result Contributions
Susana Martinez/John Sanchez Republican Party New Mexico Governor/Lieutenant Governor Won $8,529,190
Gary King/Debra Haaland Democratic Party New Mexico Governor/Lieutenant Governor Defeated $2,010,337
Grand Total Raised $10,539,527

Governor (primary only)

Comprehensive donor information for this election has been collected by Follow the Money. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $1,916,637 during the election. This information was last updated on May 28, 2015.[20]

Campaign Contribution Totals
Candidate Office Result Contributions
Alan Webber Democratic Party New Mexico Governor Defeated $1,177,628
Lawrence Rael Democratic Party New Mexico Governor Defeated $448,094
Howie Morales Democratic Party New Mexico Governor Defeated $227,394
Linda Lopez Democratic Party New Mexico Governor Defeated $63,378
Mario Martinez Democratic Party New Mexico Governor Defeated $143
Grand Total Raised $1,916,637

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "New + Mexico + governor + election"

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. National Conference of State Legislatures, "State Primary Election Types," accessed August 22, 2024
  2. Ballotpedia research conducted December 26, 2013, through January 3, 2014, researching and analyzing various state websites and codes.
  3. New Mexico Secretary of State, "FAQs for Primary & General Election Candidacy," accessed August 22, 2024
  4. Santa Fe New Mexican, "Attorney general Gary King to try again for governor job," July 10, 2012
  5. Roundhouse Roundup, "Democratic Lt. Gov. Candidate to Announce," November 27, 2013
  6. KOAT 7 ABC Albuquerque, Lawrence Rael announces gubernatorial candidacy, November 20, 2013
  7. Santa Fe New Mexican, Alan Webber joins race for New Mexico governor, October 28, 2013
  8. Deming Headlight, "Silver City Sen. Morales ponders run for Gov.," April 21, 2013
  9. Albuquerque Journal, "Sen. Lopez to run for governor," April 17, 2013
  10. 10.0 10.1 New Mexico Secretary of State, "2014 Primary Election Contest/Candidate List," accessed May 14, 2014
  11. Albuquerque Journal, "Sen. Tim Keller to run for state auditor, pass on 2014 gov’s race," May 30, 2013
  12. 12.0 12.1 The Modesto Bee, "Gary King files lawsuit over campaign money," August 4, 2014 (dead link)
  13. The Washington Times, "Gary King files lawsuit over campaign money," August 4, 2014
  14. KRQE, "Governor outspends challenger 4-to-1 on TV ads," September 24, 2014
  15. United States Elections Project, "2014 November General Election Turnout Rates," November 7, 2014
  16. TIME, "Voter Turnout in Midterm Elections Hits 72-Year Low," November 10, 2014
  17. PBS, "2014 midterm election turnout lowest in 70 years," November 10, 2014
  18. U.S. News & World Report, "Midterm Turnout Down in 2014," November 5, 2014
  19. Follow the Money, "Overview of New Mexico 2014 elections," accessed March 27, 2015
  20. Follow the Money, "Overview of New Mexico 2014 elections," accessed June 4, 2015