OPINION: State House appointment on hold until January

Dec. 23—Steven Michael Quezada, the Breaking Bad actor, standup comic and Bernalillo County commissioner, is riding a long winning streak.

But he predicts he's about to lose a significant political battle. If he does, it would be a small dose of justice.

A setback for Quezada's camp would end a tainted process in which the Bernalillo County commissioners appointed a state senator and warred over choosing someone to fill a vacancy in the state House of Representatives.

Quezada, a Democrat, tried to rush through a two-year appointment of Marsella Duarte, his favored candidate in House District 16. All Quezada could muster was a two-week appointment for Duarte, until year's end.

He now says Duarte's chances for a forthcoming two-year appointment are doomed. A Democrat from the progressive wing of the party will get the seat instead, Quezada said in an interview.

He tried to improve Duarte's chances by sponsoring county measures establishing deadlines to fill legislative vacancies. Quezada first settled on 21 days. Then he cut the time to 10 days.

Both measures carried on 3-2 votes, but these deadlines have been disavowed by the Secretary of State's Office. The state election director and others in the office say the appointment to fill the House seat for 2023-24 cannot occur until the new year.

With the sitting commissioners voting in December, Duarte had the votes. But two of the five commissioners will be replaced in January, and the new makeup of the board will cripple Duarte's chances of receiving the appointment, Quezada said.

Quezada's attempt to impose appointment deadlines was one of many causes of animosity between the commissioners.

"He keeps moving the goal posts," said Commission Chairwoman Adriann Barboa, a fellow Democrat.

Quezada said he's concerned with one factor only in making legislative appointments. "I look for the most qualified person to represent the district. That's all," he said.

Too bad none of it seems that simple. What's happened resembles old machine-style politics in which slates of candidates were predetermined by a powerful few.

The fury over appointments began when state Sen. Jacob Candelaria resigned from office in mid-term. Candelaria wanted his seat to go to his pal, state Rep. Moe Maestas, D-Albuquerque.

Just enough of the sitting county commissioners were on board with that idea. Maestas received the appointment on a 3-2 vote. He owes his Senate seat to a commissioner who should have abstained because of a glaring conflict of interest.

Democratic Commissioner Charlene Pyskoty voted for Maestas months after accepting a $5,000 in-kind campaign contribution from Maestas' wife, lobbyist Vanessa Alarid. The money paid for direct-mail advertising during Pyskoty's contested primary election.

Pyskoty lost the race, and she did not report the assistance she received from Alarid until a month after the primary. Pyskoty told me she wasn't sure why she had to report it at all, as though advertising purchased by a political ally should go unmentioned.

On another front, Maestas and Alarid moved a few miles into a home in Candelaria's Senate district. Maestas needed the new quarters to qualify for the Senate appointment.

Quezada said he now understands criticisms of Pyskoty. But, Quezada said, Barboa was every bit as compromised as Pyskoty.

Barboa is a lobbyist as well as a county commissioner. "Because she lobbies in Santa Fe, she shouldn't be making appointments to the Legislature," Quezada said.

Barboa said her work at the state Capitol is not motivated by monetary gain. "I am a registered lobbyist, but I don't lobby for corporations. I get to work for a nonprofit that's involved in community-driven bills."

She has lobbied on measures to preserve abortion access and to expand health care coverage.

Barboa is ignoring the appointment deadlines established through Quezada's maneuvers. She plans to call a commission meeting for Jan. 3 to decide who receives the two-year appointment to the House.

Duarte, the House candidate Maestas and Quezada prefer, is caught in this political storm. She will try to persuade the three holdovers and two new commissioners to turn her two-week appointment into a full two-year term.

Duarte, a kindergarten teacher who also has experience as a legislative employee, received the short-term appointment on a 4-1 vote. Barboa joined Quezada, Pyskoty and Republican Commissioner Walt Benson in supporting Duarte. "She's an excellent candidate," Barboa said.

Quezada, though, says Barboa couldn't get a different candidate through the sitting commission, so she went with Duarte for the short term. Quezada says he's sure the vote in January will be a different story.

And it will. Pyskoty will be out of office, though the stigma she brought to the appointment process can't be forgotten or undone.

Duarte says she loves her west side House district and would be honored to represent it for the next two years. If Quezada is correct, she no longer has a chance. For that matter, neither did anyone competing with Maestas for the Senate appointment.

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