Fresh out of her role as Interior Secretary in the Biden administration, Deb Haaland is making her next political move: she is running for governor of New Mexico.
Axios, which first reported the news, said an official announcement will be made in the coming weeks.
She is the first to begin assembling her machine for what will be a lengthy campaign — Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham terms out of office at the end of 2026. Democratic U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich ruled himself out of the governor’s race last week, and no Republican candidates have initiated a run.
Scott Forrester confirmed his hiring as campaign manager on Monday. While a team of veteran political strategists and others is being assembled, formal paperwork still has to be filed with the secretary of state.
The governor’s office in New Mexico has flipped between Democratic and Republican control since the 1980s. President Donald Trump has gained popularity in New Mexico while still losing three elections in the heavily Hispanic and Native American border state.
But Democrats have consolidated control over every elected statewide office and all congressional and U.S. Senate seats, and now have broad majorities in the state House and Senate.
Winning the top state office would put Haaland — a former congresswoman, state party chairwoman and backroads political canvasser for President Barack Obama — at the helm of a state enjoying a financial windfall from the nation’s fastest growing zone for oil production, the Permian Basin that overlaps portions of New Mexico and western Texas. (AP)
“Deb Haaland is of and for New Mexico,” a Haaland spokesperson told The Hill. “She’s a proven leader; she’s created New Mexico jobs, brings people together, and is getting ready to run to be New Mexico’s next governor.”
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