OPINION: Former Dem hopes to oust Republican chairman

Nov. 18—"Amarillo" Steve Pearce was never popular with Democrats in Santa Fe. He's not the choice of Santa Fe's top-ranking Republican either.

Bob Graham, chairman of the Republican Party of Santa Fe County, will not back Pearce for a third term as leader of New Mexico's GOP.

"I'm going to support Robert Aragon," Graham said. "We need a different vision. The results of the last three elections are not good. Leadership and consultants need to change. It's nothing personal, but sometimes hard decisions need to be made."

Pearce led the Republican ticket in 2018 as the candidate for governor. He lost the race for an open seat by 100,000 votes or 14 percentage points. Pearce has since served as chairman of the sagging state Republican Party.

The GOP last week descended to its lowest point. Republican candidates failed in all nine contested statewide elections for administrative offices and judicial seats. Republicans forfeited the election for state auditor because Pearce didn't find a candidate.

Those defeats weren't the biggest blow to Pearce. First-term Republican Congresswoman Yvette Herrell, one of his protégés, lost her seat in the gerrymandered 2nd District. Democrats will hold all three of New Mexico's seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Both of the state's U.S. senators also are Democrats.

At the state Capitol, Democrats control the Governor's Office and both chambers of the Legislature. Republicans in the House of Representatives have been stuck in a 25-45 disadvantage for the last four years.

"It is testament to Steve Pearce not knowing what he's doing, but also to the excellence of our own candidates and campaign organization," said House Majority Leader Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque.

Aragon has a similar assessment of Republican futility. "We're becoming an afterthought in the body politic. We haven't won in three election cycles, and the state can't afford it. We need a strong two-party system."

Pearce, 75, is a Texan by birth and by his oilman's outlook. He once shifted a New Mexico Republican convention to Amarillo, claiming Texas provided his party with more freedom. His strategy was peculiar, given that a special congressional election was about to occur in Albuquerque.

Republican state Sen. Mark Moores headed to the Amarillo confab while trying to persuade New Mexicans to send him to Congress. Democrat Melanie Stansbury trounced Moores. No one in Texas gave two cents about Moores' defeat.

Aragon, 65, is a former Democrat with his own string of losses. He last won an election in 1984 for the state House of Representatives. He initially inherited the seat by appointment, succeeding his father, Bennie Aragon. Robert Aragon's ouster in a Democratic primary in 1986 came amid complaints that he had aligned with a conservative coalition.

Aragon lost a race for Congress as a Democrat before eventually jumping to the Republican Party in 2012. Desperate for a candidate, the GOP persuaded Aragon to run for state auditor in 2014.

Democrat Tim Keller defeated Aragon. They agreed on little but forged a bond.

Aragon's 30-year-old daughter, Amberlee, died in an auto accident two months after the election. Keller sent condolences to his former rival. "It was the kindest card you'd ever read," Aragon said, still moved by Keller's gesture.

Keller was elected mayor of Albuquerque in 2017. Aragon that same year lost a race for the Albuquerque City Council.

Never again, Aragon said, will he run for public office. But he's challenging Pearce for the Republican chairmanship to rebuild a party that's in disarray.

Aragon's plan is to make sure Republicans contend in all elections, including nonpartisan municipal and school board campaigns. He sees those lower-rung races as a building block to fielding strong candidates in legislative, gubernatorial and congressional elections.

Most important, he says, GOP candidates must connect with people who have tuned out his side. "Right now, the Republican Party is not relevant because our message is not resonating with voters in New Mexico," Aragon said.

As a boy, Aragon was dyslexic and had a speech impediment. He mentions this casually but as a metaphor for perseverance. He became a lawyer and served on the State Board of Finance, as a regent of Eastern New Mexico University and on transition teams for Republican and Democratic governors.

So far, Pearce and Aragon are the only candidates for the chairmanship. The election is Dec. 3 in Las Cruces.

Pearce, popular in rural areas and especially in his old congressional district in Southern New Mexico, remains a contender. He's also the Democrats' preferred punching bag.

"Steve Pearce is doing a tremendous job running the New Mexico GOP. Steve has my complete and total endorsement for another two years!" state House Speaker Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe, wrote this week on Twitter.

That's what it's come to. Pearce is being punctured by liberals and conservatives who usually agree on nothing.

Ringside Seat is an opinion column about people, politics and news. Contact Milan Simonich at msimonich@sfnewmexican.com or 505-986-3080.