Tuesday, May 21, 2019City Election '19: Will Ike Dodge The Bullet? Says He Has Qualified For Public Financing While Rivals Scramble, Plus: Promising Term Limits
That's because the campaign of incumbent Dem Councilor Ike Benton says he has qualified for $43,000 in public financing while his two main rivals--twentysomethings Zach Quintero and Joseph Griego--are struggling to get the necessary 433 $5 contributions to also get $43,000. Without public funds there would appear little chance of taking out Benton who has been on the council since 2005 and is under the gun for his all out support of the failed ART project on Central Ave. and for not doing enough to halt the ABQ crime wave. His downtown, Barelas, North Valley and near UNM district is heavily Hispanic and ripe for the picking by a candidate of that ethnicity. But Quintero has been forced to hire people to help him try to get the required donations before the May 31 deadline. Griego and friends are also busy going to door to door. Benton had an easy time qualifying. He has deep ties to the district and his progressive politics are beloved by his followers who say he has been on the job when it comes to crime. They point to the failure of Mayor Berry under whose watch crime soared. As for ART, they still hold out hope that someday it will be a functioning bus route and they applaud Benton's dedication to public transit. Quintero and Griego are both promising contenders but if they don't qualify for public financing there will be little chance they will be financially competitive through private donations. Their only remaining hope would be keeping Benton below 50 percent and forcing a run-off election. Quintero supporters say his last days push will put him over the top and public financing will be obtained.
There are three lesser known contenders in the race, none of whom are expected to qualify for public financing. If that trio qualifies for the ballot by collecting enough petition signatures (500) that would give the young hotshots some hope that a crowded race could help keep Benton below 50. There won't be any holiday barbecues for Quintero and Griego as they race to the wire to qualify. Not that they need to be around any heat this Memorial Day. Benton has already given them plenty. PERFECT FOR "BURQUE" Well, isn't this special: A company plans to capitalize on the crime in Albuquerque. BioOne specializes in cleaning up after a crime scene. “We've got full respirators that you clean out tear gas, you need 'cause it's going to make you sick, if you don't,” said Sunny Cowart, who manages the clean-up process at BioOne. “Things like dried blood, body fluids, even if it's just vomit. Things like that." So who says businesses doesn't want to come to ABQ because of the crime? Welcome aboard, BioOne. We've been waiting for you. (By the way that headline above is the first and probably only time we will ever refer to Albuquerque as "Burque.") TERM LIMITS
U.S. Term Limits (USTL), the leader in the non-partisan national movement to limit terms for elected officials, praises New Mexico U.S. Senate candidate Gavin Clarkson for signing the pledge for a term limits on Congress amendment. Currently, U.S. Term Limits has received support from nearly 70 pledge signers in Congress. Well, at least you got a bit of good press, Gavin We have to add that term limits in the US Senate would be a disaster for New Mexico. It has been the seniority system that for decades has played into the hands of New Mexico lawmakers who have brought home the bacon. In fact, our noticeable lack of seniority with our current two Senators is viewed as one of the state's economic problems. Sen. Heinrich is only now in his second term. Sen. Udall is also in his second term but is leaving at the end of next year and will be replaced by a new Senator with very little seniority. That lack of seniority is not a plus for a state that is among the top recipients of federal money. In other words, New Mexicans need their Senators carried out of the chamber in a pine box--not because of term limits. This is the home of New Mexico politics. E-mail your news and comments. (jmonahan@ix.netcom.com) Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.   (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2019 |
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