Democrat Stephanie DuBois appointed to Otero County Commission as Republicans lead in early voting

Stephanie DuBois was appointed Oct. 19 to the seat formerly held by Couy Griffin on the Otero County Commission by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

DuBois is a candidate for the seat in the Nov. 8 election, where she faces Republican Amy Barela.

DuBois owns a dog grooming business and is former chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Otero County. Her opponent, Barela, owns and operates North 54 Salvage and served as the head of the Republican Party of Otero County.

DuBois' appointment comes just weeks ahead of the general election, in which Republican voters in Otero County are outpacing Democrats and Independents in early voting. The person elected to that seat will be sworn in to the position in January.

On Thursday, the New Mexico Secretary of State's Office reported 1,989 voters had cast an early vote. Of those 1,041 were Republican and 736 were Democrats. Ten Libertarians had cast a vote and 202 either identified as "other" or declined to state a party.

Statewide, 45,748 voters cast an early votes by Thursday, however, Democrats were leading with 25,840 of those votes. Of New Mexico's 33 counties, 15 reported that Republicans were outpacing other parties in early voting, mostly in southern counties like Otero County.

The Republican Party of New Mexico responded to the appointment with a statement calling it "political theater" and accusing Lujan Grisham of putting politics ahead of Otero County voter's interest.

"Lujan Grisham doesn't care about the constituents of Otero County, and this ridiculous political appointment is proof," said Steve Pearce, chairman of the Republican Party of New Mexico.

"DuBois will be subservient to Lujan Grisham and ignore what's best for the residents in Otero County."

DuBois will join a three-person Commission whose other members are Republican and have backed conservative policies in the County, including a resolution to declare the County a "sanctuary for the unborn" and unanimously deciding not to certify the primary election results.

Both of those issues were spearheaded by Griffin, who was removed from the Otero County Commission by District Judge Francis Mathew. Mathew said in his opinion that Griffin was eligible for removal under the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment Disqualification Clause as Griffin participated in the "insurrection" Jan. 6, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol.

DuBois is likely to be seated at the next Otero County Commission meeting scheduled for Nov. 10.

Jessica Onsurez can be reached at jonsurez@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JussGREAT.

More:Stephanie Dubois likely appointee to Couy Griffin's Otero County Commission seat

This article originally appeared on Alamogordo Daily News: Democrat Stephanie DuBois appointed to Otero County Commission as Republicans lead in early voting