Amy Barela

For the first time in state history a major political party will not have a candidate running for a United States Senate seat. 

This epic fail of the NMGOP was revealed this week when Christopher Vanden Heuvel, the lone Republican running in the June primary failed to submit enough valid signatures to qualify for the ballot. That sets up Democratic Senator Ben Ray Lujan to score a second term with only token opposition, if any at all. 

The senate ballot mishap underscores the perilous state of the GOP. 

The party holds no statewide elected executive offices and no seats in the five -member congressional delegation. The governor is a Democrat and both chambers of the legislature overwhelmingly so. The five-member state Supreme Court is all Democratic. 

Lujan is receiving a symbolic primary challenge from Democratic Socialist Matt Dodson. The GOP's only hope now is to find someone to run against Lujan under their banner as an independent or as a Libertarian or other minor party. Whatever happens, it all amounts to a free ride for Lujan.

Besides highlighting the crisis of the NMGOP's long-term relevance, the failure to field a Lujan opponent could also hurt their already long shot chances to take the Governor's office in November. That would require a strong turnout and with no branded Republican senate candidate at the top of the ticket, it becomes even more problematic. 

NMGOP Chairwoman Amy Barela takes the hit for not having a back-up plan and for not riding herd on Vanden Heuvel's campaign and ensuring the party fielded a contender. 

The GOP senate debacle also emphasizes that New Mexico has not just become essentially a one party state but appears to be slipping into a California type environment where Republicans seek out conservative Democrats to support. That has already happened in some instances. 

THE GOP CRISIS 

Joe Monahan

The true nature of this Republican existential crisis is often obscured by a sitting Democratic governor who is a political split personality, adopting progressive policies on environment and gun control policy and the like but going all in with the GOP on crime. 

Her continued failure on those crime bills is the "tell" of how her positioning on "bipartisanship" remains largely irrelevant in a state unwilling to elect Republicans and who do not share the bifurcated view of the electorate that she grew up with.

The near landslide December re-election of ABQ Mayor Tim Keller where crime was a top issue served to reinforce the hardening of the Democratic position in the state's most populous county which is a must-have for statewide electoral success. 

In addition, the "bothsidesism" of the legacy media frequently disguises the dire state of the state's minority party. Their narratives continue to feature the GOP as an integral part of lawmaking and political tension even as their philosophical influence has been arguably nil--and for years not months. 

For example, universal child care, the constitutional amendment for early childhood education, the adoption of environmental rules, gun restrictions, oversight of ICE and the ever growing state budget have all been vigorously challenged by the few Republicans still standing. It has been to no avail and again emphasizing--for better or worse--the singularity of New Mexican politics in the absence of a vital opposing force. 

THE BOTTOM LINES 

There are occasional forays into bipartisanship but they are exceedingly rare and mostly insignificant. 

Ours is not an era of bipartisanship. This is an era of extreme polarization where states like New Mexico are becoming a deeper Blue and Red states even more crimson. 

Never mind either side "working across the aisle." When there's hardly anyone left on the other side, why would they? 

This is the Home of New Mexico Politics.