Write-in candidate faces ex-Republican in Libertarian race for governor
May 15—The Libertarian primary for governor pits a businesswoman who previously sought the nomination as a Republican and an agricultural hemp producer intent on stopping her candidacy.
"Karen Bedonie is not a Libertarian at all, and I'm not gonna have it," write-in candidate Ginger Grider, who has been a Libertarian since 2016, said about her opponent, who switched her party affiliation in January.
"I won't have it," added Grider, 52. "She will not appear on the general [election ballot in November] under the Libertarian Party ticket because she is not a Libertarian."
Bedonie, who had been seeking the Republican nomination for governor, changed her party affiliation Jan. 27. Efforts to reach Bedonie for comment were unsuccessful. Her voicemail is full and won't accept any messages, and she did not respond to a request for an interview sent via text.
Crystal Meiwes, who serves as treasurer and regional coordinator for Bedonie's campaign, said Bedonie was traveling and unavailable for an interview.
"It will have to be sometime within the next three weeks or so because we're completely booked and scheduled," Meiwes said.
On her campaign website, Bedonie, who is Navajo, calls herself a "grassroots New Mexican" and says she is done with the "abuse" of the Republican Party of New Mexico.
"I am no token Indian," the website states. "I researched the Libertarian Party and I found they will let 'Bedonie be Bedonie.' "
But Grider claims Bedonie is trying to pull a fast one on Libertarians.
Although she got into the race to try to prevent Bedonie from winning the Libertarian nomination for governor, Grider, who ran for secretary of state in 2016, said she's "in it to win it." Still, she acknowledges the odds are against her with Libertarians making up a small portion of the electorate.
"The chance is slim — it's not none — it's slim, but my intent is to spread the message of liberty through this race," she said. "If perchance I happen to become governor through some strange circumstance that no one could foresee in the history of politics ever," she added, "being a Libertarian with the amount of Libertarians we have in the state of New Mexico, then that would be a fortuitous and wonderful thing for all the citizens because I am seeking to serve all the citizens of New Mexico all the time."
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