Pence visits NM to campaign with Ronchetti

Oct. 6—SANTA FE — Former Vice President Mike Pence visited Roswell on Thursday to campaign for Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Ronchetti — the latest in a string of GOP heavyweights to stop in New Mexico ahead of the Nov. 8 election.

Ronchetti has also campaigned with three Republican governors — Doug Ducey of Arizona, Ron DeSantis of Florida and Glenn Youngkin of Virginia — as he seeks to unseat incumbent Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham.

"The momentum is clearly with the Ronchetti campaign following the recent TV debate and we're excited that former Vice President Mike Pence is coming to campaign with Mark today in Roswell," Ronchetti campaign spokesman Ryan Sabel said.

State Democratic Party spokesman Daniel Garcia said the visit shows Ronchetti is "looking to bring Pence's right-wing, anti-abortion, job-losing agenda to New Mexico."

PILLOW TALK: MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell — who faces a defamation lawsuit connected to his false allegations that the 2020 election was

rigged — is set to be a featured speaker at the Ruidoso Convention Center on Friday, according to the center's calendar.

An online advertisement for the event also lists Steve Bannon, the former adviser to then-President Donald Trump, as a speaker.

The all-day event — sponsored by a group called Concerned Citizens for New Mexico — comes as New Mexico enters the final five weeks of the general election campaign.

Republican secretary of state candidate Audrey Trujillo is among those set to participate, in a panel titled "Profiles in Courage," according to the online invitation.

A showing of the film "Absolute Proof" — which airs false election claims, according to PolitiFact, the fact-checking website — is also scheduled.

Dan McKay: dmckay@abqjournal.com