Vasquez launches re-election campaign for congressional District 2

Sep. 16—Congressman Gabe Vasquez launched his attempt to be the first Democrat in more than 40 years to hold consecutive terms in New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District with a "Desayuno Con Gabe," or "Breakfast with Gabe," campaign kickoff Saturday at Kathy Duffy's farm in the South Valley, which after recent redistricting is in the northern reaches of the district.

Vasquez held campaign events throughout the Interstate 25 corridor traveling south on Saturday. He had also planned rallies at the Capital Bar and Brewery in Soccoro and the Mesilla Plaza. He picked Sept. 16 because it marked two years since the start of his first campaign and Mexican Independence Day.

He said he wanted to recognize both cultures' roots in the district, which includes the state's border with Mexico.

"I always felt like there should be a strong Hispanic candidate that would represent the people of New Mexico in this district," he said. "So today's an opportunity for us to highlight what we can do when we work together in our different communities."

The election will be a rematch between Vasquez and Republican Yvette Herrell, who held the seat from 2021 to 2023. Herrell publicly announced her candidacy to reclaim her seat in April alongside House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., at an event in Las Cruces.

Vasquez beat Herrell by less than a percentage point in the 2022 election. Both the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) and the Democratic Congressional Committee have indicated they expect it to be one of the most competitive U.S House races in the country in 2024.

The boundaries of the district are currently being litigated after Republicans and others filed a lawsuit.

"Extremist Gabe Vasquez spent his short tenure in Congress coddling criminals and attacking energy production," NRCC spokeswoman Delanie Bomar said in a statement. "Hopefully, Gabe enjoys his re-election announcement party — it's the last one he'll have as a congressman."

Vasquez said his track record of being independent during his first term will resonate with voters in New Mexico's most Republican-leaning congressional district. A Democrat hasn't won consecutive terms since before 1980.

"I think the most important thing is that I've been an independent decision-maker that champions common sense and bipartisan solutions that don't leave New Mexicans behind," Vasquez said in a recent interview.

He pointed to his work with U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., creating a Bipartisan Southwest Caucus, which aims to work toward solutions on economic development, international trade, border security and the conservation of public lands.

Vasquez was also one of only four Democrats in the U.S. House who supported the most recent National Defense Authorization Act. A member of the House Armed Services Committee, Vasquez said he had worked to secure New Mexico-specific provisions in the bill so he wasn't going to risk the measure not passing.

Vasquez said in less than a year in office he's forged relationships with farmers and ranchers, Native American tribes, oil-field workers and veterans.

A member of a mixed-status family who grew up on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border, Vasquez is fluent in Spanish and switches back and forth between the languages frequently.

The district is rooted in southern New Mexico but after a recent redistricting the 2nd Congressional District now stretches into Albuquerque's South Valley and West Side.

"That's why it's so important for us to be part of District 2 because we value being a rural community and agriculture," said Duffy, who for decades hosted events for Democratic politicians with her late husband. "I grew up in 4-H. We went to school, we went to church, we went to 4-H."

Vasquez said some of his biggest priorities in a second term would be economic development in his district and addressing immigration.

He said he would do so by streamlining the process for asylum seekers while also pumping resources into border security to address the amount of fentanyl that is crossing the border.

He chose to end his campaign kickoff on Saturday night at the Mesilla Plaza to recognize Mexican culture within the district.

"It is home to a very historic plaza that before the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase was always part of Mexico. And that's why you still have the Mexican and the American flag emblazoned on the on the plaza. And so it's kind of a way to bring cultures together," he said. "It's also where I live."