Latest news with #Attleson
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Former NM Democratic Party official wants a Hispanic person to replace her
Julie Rochman. (Courtesy photo) It remained unclear on Friday who will become the treasurer for New Mexico's ruling political party, following the previous treasurer's resignation after just one month on the job. Julie Rochman, of Albuquerque, resigned as treasurer for the Democratic Party of New Mexico on Wednesday, in a resignation letter addressed to all of the party's members, who elected her and the rest of its leadership on April 26. Rochman wrote she is concerned DPNM's officers don't reflect New Mexico's diversity. Including herself, three of the four officers are not originally from New Mexico, two are older white women, one comes from a rural area and none speak Spanish, she wrote. 'Most distressing to me, in our minority-majority Hispanic state, is DPNM's lack of a single Hispanic executive,' Rochman wrote. 'This is a glaring deficit and strategic negligence.' Rochman wrote the party should replace her with 'someone who represents the very people we've overlooked for too long — ideally a Hispanic leader rooted in a rural space.' DPNM spokesperson Daniel Garcia told Source NM on Friday party rules do not determine a timeline for replacing its treasurer, however, 'DPNM wants to move expeditiously in finding a replacement to fulfill the position's work without interruption.' The new treasurer will be selected by the party's officers, Garcia said, including Chair Sara Attleson, Vice Chair Cam Crawford, Secretary Brenda Hoskie and the three congressional district vice chairs. 'Right now there are not specific individuals under consideration, but the process will be conducted in a thorough, transparent process,' Garcia said. Rochman wrote that Attleson and Crawford 'have squashed efforts for all officers to work together as a team' and 'intentionally excluded' her. 'They don't inform or engage with me,' Rochman wrote. 'In short, they've made clear that my expertise and input are unwelcome.' In a statement, Attleson denied Rochman's allegations that she wasn't welcome in the party, and defended its leaders' diversity. 'Contrary to her letter, we welcomed Julie to be a part of the movement we're building,' Attleson said. 'Unfortunately, shortly after the election, she decided this team wasn't an ideal fit for her.' Attleson pointed to the majority of New Mexico's statewide and federal elected leaders being Hispanic, including Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, along with several of the congressional district vice chairs. Rochman told Source NM it is great that so many elected officials in New Mexico are Hispanic, 'but it doesn't excuse the fact that the party doesn't look like the state.' Attleson also pointed to Crawford's background as a young Black man, and Hoskie's membership in the Navajo Nation and fluency in Diné. 'New Mexico Democrats proudly draw our strength from our diversity, which is apparent in our leadership,' Attleson said. 'At a time when billionaires are dictating public policy and Donald Trump is eliminating essential services, we have to stay focused on fighting for working class New Mexicans, not turning on each other.' Rochman wrote that she received a nondisclosure agreement in late May after weeks of no communication about ongoing party affairs and strategic planning. Rochman told Source NM in an interview that Sean Ward, the party's executive director, asked her to sign it. A copy of the unsigned NDA shows it would have barred Rochman from saying or doing anything that would damage the reputation of any of the party's officers, staff or volunteers. Rochman wrote in her letter that the NDA is inconsistent with her values and undermines her right to free speech and her obligation to speak truth to power. 'Essentially, it would be a gag order for the rest of my life,' she wrote. Rochman told Source NM that she feels the document's non-disparagement language 'was very targeted' at her because she doesn't get along with Attleson. 'It seemed very Trumpian to me,' Rochman said. 'There had been some other things that were rather Trumpian, and I just didn't want to be associated with an administration that was going to govern that way.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
NM Democrats pick teachers union official as new state party chairwoman
Apr. 26—SANTA FE — With a key election cycle on the horizon, New Mexico Democrats on Saturday picked Sara Attleson to lead the party for the next two years. Attleson, a school librarian and teachers union fundraising official, received 38.8% of the ranked choice vote points to win election as party chairwoman, edging three other candidates. The votes were cast by more than 460 party insiders via online balloting, with results tallied Saturday at a state central committee meeting in Albuquerque. She takes over the party reins from Jessica Velasquez of Sandia Park, who did not seek reelection after serving as state Democratic Party chairwoman since 2021. Attleson said in an interview after the meeting that she would seek to unite Democrats across New Mexico. "New Mexico is a blue state, but in order to keep it blue, we need to stay united on a county level," Attleson told the Journal. She also said she would strive to bring the state Democratic Party back to its working-class roots, saying, "I think we've gotten a little far away from that." New Mexico has largely shed its swing state label over the last decade, as Democrats hold all statewide offices and sizable majorities in both legislative chambers. The last Republican presidential candidate to win New Mexico's five electoral votes was George W. Bush in 2004. But the Democratic Party's national approval rating has sagged in recent months, and New Mexico's all-Democratic congressional delegation has found itself in the minority in the Republican-controlled Congress. Given that backdrop, Attleson said the Democratic Party needs to reconnect with many younger voters and Hispanic men who have drifted away from the party in recent election cycles. Attleson and newly elected Democratic Party Vice Chairman Cam Crawford of Santa Fe also raised the alarm about the impacts President Donald Trump's policies could have on New Mexico. In addition to possible changes to public schools and Medicaid, Crawford, a full-time firefighter, also expressed concern about the Trump administration's response to natural disasters as the state prepares for a potentially dangerous wildfire season. Along with a new party chairwoman and vice chairman, New Mexico Democrats also elected Brenda Hoskie of McKinley County as party secretary and Julie Rochman of Bernalillo County as treasurer during their Saturday meeting. The terms the new party officers were elected to will run through the 2026 election cycle, in which all statewide offices will be up for election. The election cycle could feature several competitive Democratic primary contests, including a race for governor that has already seen Deb Haaland and Sam Bregman announce campaigns. Other Democrats could also enter the race to succeed Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is barred under the state Constitution from seeking a third consecutive term next year. Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., is seeking reelection next year, and Democrats will also be defending the three U.S. House seats in New Mexico they currently hold, including the hotly contested 2nd Congressional District seat held by U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez. Democrats currently make up about 43% of New Mexico's more than 1.3 million voters, though the percentage of registered Democrats has been decreasing in recent years.
