NEW MEXICO'S OPEN SENATE SEAT: THE COMPELLING CASE FOR TOM UDALL

I'm happy to introduce a new voice at DWT tonight, a colleague of mine from People For the American Way, Alex Flores from Corrales, New Mexico. He's a Senior at the George Washington University where he studies Public Policy. Active in local and national politics, he's one of the youngest ever appointed voting members of the Democratic Party of New Mexico's Platform and Resolutions Committee and a Young People For (YP4) Senior Fellow. I asked him to put the Draft Udall Movement into perspective for DWT readers. Here's his first report:

A Draft Movement in the Southwest has formed to convince Congressman Tom Udall (D-NM) to run for the United State Senate. In New Mexico, circles are alive with chatter that despite his announcement that he won't run, Congressman Tom Udall is still being urged by family, friends, and colleagues to make a bid for the Senate.

We are too. This week, we're trying to reach 100 small donors to tell Congressman Udall that New Mexicans want him to run for the Senate.

The Draft has been highlighted by the netroots, including the authoritative Heath Haussamen in New Mexico and here at Down With Tyranny. We've gotten plenty of attention elsewhere which you can browse here.

Today, New Mexico may have become the biggest battleground state in the country. With long-time Senator Pete Domenici's (R) retirement, and Representatives Wilson's (R) and Pearce's (R) announcements to run for Senate, a campaign by Tom Udall would leave every single Congressional seat in the state wide open. You'll recall that Heather Wilson beat seasoned politico Patricia Madrid for the 1st District seat last season by about 900 votes. In the past 5 elections, she's beaten 4 different opponents, making her a serious contender and a veteran campaigner.

This is one more reason to make sure that a Democrat like Tom Udall, who will run well across the state, will run for the United States Senate from New Mexico. Udall can help to deliver down-ballot races by driving up turnout for all 3 congressional seats that would be open and for State House and Senate seats where a turnout edge can make all the difference.

The Congressman is from New Mexico's 3rd Congressional district encompassing the northern portion of the state including Santa Fe, Taos, and Farmington. Tom Udall is the only Democratic member of the New Mexico House delegation and is one of the most popular Dems statewide. He has won statewide twice as Attorney General, and had $715,000 in the bank at the end of July. He's also a progressive legislator who opposed the War in Iraq and has a deep interest in solutions to the global warming crisis (see the video).

Congressman Tom Udall has seen contributions from 52 donors totaling over $515 since the Draft movement began. In contrast, eight days after announcing his bid for the Senate, Mayor Martin Chavez (D) has raised $255 on ActBlue from just two donors (10/16/07).

Congressman Tom Udall is the logical choice to run for the open Senate Seat. Popular Governor Bill Richardson continues to do well in Iowa and New Hampshire and has affirmed that he will continue his Presidential campaign. Mayor Martin Chavez is also running but was defeated at the polls two Tuesdays ago in Albuquerque City elections and is unpopular with Progressives.

In some ways, it seems like Udall is destined for this opportunity; he's from a long lineage of incredible public servants and has money in the bank ($801,562) at exactly the right time. Tom Udall is progressive and is especially strong on the environment and the Iraq War; he most recently voted against supplemental lacking a timetable for withdrawal.

In terms of numbers, his candidacy just makes sense. Congresswoman Heather Wilson (R) and Congressman Steve Pearce (R) are the two leading contenders to replace Senator Domenici on the Republican side (Pearce announced his candidacy today while Wilson declared less than 24 hours after Domenici's announcement and after weeks of traveling statewide). The numbers tell us that both Republicans beat current Dem candidates Chavez and Wiviott by small-to-wide margins. The following summary of the numbers comes from the Democracy For New Mexico blog.

Starting with Republican candidate Steven Pearce, Congressman from New Mexico's 2nd District:
*    Pearce loses to Congressman Tom Udall by 18 points
*    loses to Governor Bill Richardson by 24 points
*    defeats Albuquerque Mayor Marty Chavez by 21 points
*    defeats former Attorney General Patricia Madrid by 16 points
*    and defeats businessman Don Wiviott by 35 points.

Now to Republican candidate Heather Wilson, Congresswoman from New Mexico's 1st Congressional District:
*    Wilson loses to Udall by 18 points (same as Pearce),
*    loses to Richardson by 27 points (Wilson runs 3 points weaker than Pearce),
*    defeats Chavez by 4 points (Wilson runs 17 points weaker than Pearce),
*    effectively ties Patricia Madrid (Wilson runs 15 points weaker than Pearce)
*    and defeats Wiviott by 17 points (Wilson runs 18 points weaker than Pearce).

Someone needs to put these numbers on the Congressman's desk and tell him that it's time to run.

New Mexicans are sending their message loud and clear. Udall, who declared he would not run for the seat, is seeing a groundswell of support from New Mexicans urging him into the race. A true public servant, Congressman Udall is undoubtedly watching closely.

Help to send the message even louder as we try to reach 100 donors this week!

Please pass this along to your friends, families, and colleagues both in New Mexico and across the country. The Democratic candidate in New Mexico is not only important to New Mexicans themselves, but to everyone across the country as we try to increase our majority in the coming year. Congressman Udall is the perfect candidate to turn New Mexico's Senate delegation blue. Help us to convince him!

A move to run after announcing otherwise is not without precedent and you don't hear anyone complaining about the last guy who did it. In August of 2005, now Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown announced that he would not run against former-Senator Mike DeWine in Ohio. For the next two months, the grassroots urged him to reconsider his decision for the people of Ohio and for people across the nation. He eventually reversed his decision and went on to win the seat for Democrats, helping to give us control of the US Senate.

For one, he's a good progressive. He's pro-choice, an environmentalist, a defender of civil liberties and civil rights, and one of the great supporters for veterans in the Democratic Party today. Let's send Tom Udall to the United States Senate!


On the Web:

DraftUdall.Com

Draft Udall Act Blue