New Mexicans had enough confidence in the state’s voting system to reelect Maggie Toulouse Oliver to a second full term as Secretary of State in her race against an election critic. They also put their trust in another Democrat, Laura Montoya, to serve as State Treasurer.
Toulouse Oliver, who spent a decade as Bernalillo County clerk before becoming Secretary of State in 2016 after a special election, handily beat Republican Audrey Trujillo, winning 54.39 percent of the vote to Trujillo’s 42.86 percent, according to unofficial results.
Toulouse Oliver was in the national spotlight at times during the ongoing saga over election security, tangling with Otero County officials over the certification of the 2020 election.
She’s actively fought election disinformation. Earlier this year, her office launched a “Rumor vs. Reality” website meant to dispel rumors and correct the most prevalent misinformation circulating in public discourse.
Trujillo, who was skeptical of the 2020 presidential election results – once calling it a “coup” on the part of Democrats – is a Corrales resident running for statewide office for the first time, having run unopposed in the Republican primary.
No word on whether Trujillo accepted the result of the vote at The Paper press time.
Libertarian Mayna Erika Myers likely took some votes away from Trujillo, collecting 2.75 percent of the vote for Secretary of State, unofficially.
State Treasurer
In a match up pitting a pair of Montoyas against each other for State Treasurer, Laura Montoya prevailed against Harry B. Montoya, a former Democrat who turned Republican over the abortion issue. She unofficially garnered 52.55 percent of the vote, keeping the position being vacated by Tim Eichenberg overseen by a Democrat.
Harry Montoya, of Nambe, served six years on the Santa Fe County Commission as a Democrat before switching his party affiliation.
Laura Montoya served two terms as treasurer in Sandoval County before lining up for the statewide position. She cut her political teeth as a constituent services representative for U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman. She’s also worked for the New Mexico Legislature and the State Treasurer’s Office under Douglas Brown.
Laura Montoya’s biggest challenge for the Treasurer’s seat may have preceded the primary election. Her predecessor, Eichenberg, was angling for his chief of staff to win the Democratic nomination instead, going so far as to pay for an attack ad against Montoya. But Montoya went on to win the party’s nomination anyway with 59 percent of the vote.