Democratic U.S. Sen. Heinrich wins re-election as New Mexico awaits results in the House district

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Democratic U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez is seeking a second term in New Mexico's swing district on the U.S.-Mexico border in a rematch against the Republican he ousted in 2022, as of was counted on Tuesday evening.

Republican challenger Yvette Herrell was making her fourth straight campaign for Congress in the majority-Latino district that stretches from the border to Albuquerque.

Separately, U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich won re-election to a third term in New Mexico on Tuesday, defeating Republican candidate Nella Domenici — the daughter of longtime U.S. Sen. Pete V. Domenici — in her first bid for public office.

In the 2nd Congressional District, Democratic state lawmakers redrew congressional boundaries in 2021 to divide a politically conservative, oil-producing region into three districts.

Vasquez, a former Las Cruces city councilman, has touted his knowledge of the border region and its economy as the U.S.-born son of immigrants from Mexico. His campaign proposed protections against cartels that smuggle drugs or migrants, a humanitarian approach to asylum seekers and support for abortion rights.

FILE – Republican candidate for New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District Yvette Herrell speaks at a campaign event in Las Cruces, N.M., Aug. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton, File)

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Andres Leighton

Herrell, a real estate agent and former state lawmaker, fought for tough immigration policies this year alongside Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson. She has denounced President Biden's surveillance of the border while advocating a return to former President Donald Trump's efforts to expand the border wall and enforce a requirement that asylum seekers wait in Mexico for hearings in U.S. immigration court.

The district still includes parts of the oil-rich Permian Basin, and Herrell has distinguished herself as a staunch advocate for the energy industry in the second-largest oil-producing state after Texas. Vasquez unsuccessfully proposed creating a compensation fund for uninsured medical costs related to air pollution and heat-related illnesses in a bill aimed at oil field workers.

When it comes to abortion access, Herrell has downplayed Congress' role, saying she will follow state law following the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade ruling. She previously supported legislation in Congress to restrict access to abortion.

New Mexico's abortion laws are among the most liberal in the country. Vasquez supports initiatives in Congress to protect abortion rights.

On January 6, 2021, while in Congress, Herrell joined Republicans in opposing certification of Biden's electoral victories in Arizona and Pennsylvania. She also voted against a 2021 bipartisan bill that invested billions in American infrastructure.

The district's voting population is about 56% Latino – with centuries-old ties to Mexican and Spanish settlements – and 5% Native American, who live on the Mescalero Apache Reservation, four Pueblo communities, remote parts of the Navajo Nation and Traverse land holdings of the Oklahoma-based Fort Sill Apache Tribe.

Meanwhile, in a closely contested Senate race, Heinrich defeated Domenici, who invoked the legacy of her father, political legend and six-term U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici.

Heinrich won over voters by highlighting his work on infrastructure, energy policy and expanding national security spending at Los Alamos National Laboratory. He is a gun safety advocate and has advocated for an overhaul of Senate filibuster rules, which can easily be used to obstruct or block votes.

Nella Domenici, a former executive at hedge fund giant Bridgewater Associates, failed to gain traction when she touted her business expertise and concerns about crime, inflation and public education.

She called the U.S.-Mexico border a crime and drug crisis and advocated for expanding alternatives to traditional public schools.

The Senate candidates clashed over abortion rights as New Mexico increasingly serves as a treatment destination for patients from nearby states that ban the procedure. Heinrich supports expanding federal abortion guarantees, while Domenici emphasized states' rights and said she would focus on efforts to reduce unwanted pregnancies through education and birth control.

Domenici said she would vote for Trump, although she didn't mention him much during the campaign. Trump lost the 2020 vote in New Mexico by 11%. Domenici's father was the last New Mexico Republican to serve in the Senate, retiring in 2009 after six terms.

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