Darren White — a former Bernalillo County sheriff, state cabinet secretary and one of Mayor Tim Keller’s most vocal critics — announced last week that he would run for Mayor of Albuquerque.
In an announcement video released Thursday, White called himself a fiscal conservative and vowed to crack down on crime and homelessness in Albuquerque. In a news release, White criticized Keller for the number of homicides during the mayor’s two terms.
“Mayor Keller has presided over the most murders in Albuquerque’s history,” White said.
“His weak approach to crime and homelessness has failed and it’s time for change.”
Keller is not prohibited from running for a third term and has signalled he will do so, but has yet to make a formal announcement.
White went on to say in his official announcement that he will “give police officers the resources and support they need to restore order to our city” and “repeal Mayor Keller’s Sanctuary City law,” referring to the city’s policy of not working with federal immigration agents or detaining anyone based on their immigration status.
White said he plans on using public financing to fund his campaign.
If he wins election in November, it won’t be White’s first time working in City Hall. He was the Chief Public Safety Officer under Mayor Richard Berry. He retired from the position in 2011, a little more than a week after he showed up to the scene of a car crash involving his wife. The Police Oversight Commission exonerated White of any wrongdoing in the incident later that year.
White has long been involved in politics. He unsuccessfully ran for Congress in 2008 against Martin Heinrich in the state’s 1st Congressional District.
White also served as Secretary of Public Safety under Gov. Gary Johnson, though he resigned when the then-Republican governor began advocating for marijuana legalization. Despite lobbying against state medical cannabis legalization efforts, White again made news when he changed his stance on the substance and ran a medical cannabis company, which sold just before New Mexico legalized recreational use.