RJ Berry’s election win last night is a win for Albuquerque and New Mexico. Mayor-elect Berry is exactly the type of new leader we need in New Mexico. He is a 3H guy – honest, humble, hard-working – who take his responsibilities very seriously. Congratulations to RJ and his family!
I think the GOP needs to be careful about misinterpreting this win as a vindication. As the Democrats are quick to point out, the majority of votes went to the Democratic candidates, not the Republican candidate. However, more important is this fact noted by Eye on Albuquerque:
But what’s also clear is that a solid 65% of voters wanted someone other than Martin Chavez to be mayor.
There is no mistaking it. There is a strong anti-incumbent sentiment out there among the voters. As Don Harris’ City Council race demonstrated, that doesn’t mean that anyone can win a seat, but it does mean that voters will choose a truly qualified leader over the entrenched incumbent. We saw it last night in the mayoral race, and we also saw it in Dan Lewis’ win over Michael Cadigan. Dan was another 3H type of candidate.
So, where does that leave us. Well, Lt. Governor Diane Denish needs to take notice. Try as she may, its a little too late to disengage herself from the scandal fraught Richardson administration. As the economy crisis continues to worsen, people will rightfully be blaming the incumbents and those who enabled them, and looking for viable alternatives.