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Multiple outlets reporting NM Second Congressional District re-elects Gabe Vasquez

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Multiple outlets reporting NM Second Congressional District re-elects Gabe Vasquez


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Editor’s note: The votes reported here are based on overall vote counts reported to the New Mexico Secretary of State and are considered unofficial. To see other unofficial election results visit https://electionresults.sos.nm.gov.

Gabe Vasquez is returning to Congress.

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Multiple media outlets reported late Tuesday that Vasquez had defeated Alamogordo Republican Yvette Herrell.

Just after midnight, the Associated Press, Fox News and USA Today were among the outlets awarding the 2nd Congressional District race to Vasquez, who also defeated Herrell in 2022 by 1,350 votes.

“The difference for me in this race was how much more knowledgeable I am about the issues impacting our district,” Vasquez told the Sun-News. “I haven’t thought too much about what the former Congresswoman and her platform is all about. I thought about governing from Day 1 and governing until I’m here. Regardless of the results of the election, I want to be proud of the work I’ve done, but I feel that the work I have done has given voters confidence to send me back to Congress.”

Around 10:30 p.m. on Election Night, the Vasquez campaign ended its watch party at a downtown Las Cruces bar when the race was tied on the New Mexico Secretary of State website with Vasquez holding a 41 vote lead.

Over an hour later, Vasquez had secured 52% of the 260,262 votes in the race according to unofficial results on the New Mexico Secretary of State website. There were 192,673 total votes in the 2022 General Election.

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Vasquez secured 57% of the 82,460 votes in Doña Ana County just after midnight on Wednesday.

The district encompasses southern New Mexico which, after redistricting, now represents a swath extending from the southwest up to part of Bernalillo County, including Albuquerque’s South Valley.

The race for New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District was identified a a potential swing district, even drawing U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson to stump for Herrell in Las Cruces during the summer, as well as a visit to Albuquerque last week by former President Donald Trump.

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Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries also made a stop in Albuquerque in October.

The seat has flipped parties three times in the past six years. Herrell lost by two percentage points to Democrat Xochitl Torres Small in 2018, but won a rematch two years later, securing 54% of the 264,946 votes.

Herrell attacked Vasquez on immigration and the border, but also campaigned on the economy, an increased cost of living and crime.

Vasquez recently introduced a bipartisan Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act, which would provide increased funding, technology and staffing for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He has also introduced a package of immigration and border bills, which he announced in November 2023.

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The Las Cruces Sun-News is providing this content free of charge as part of our commitment to inform and empower Doña Ana County voters. Please consider supporting local journalism through a subscription.



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New Mexico

Grants cancels Christmas parade due to shootings

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Grants cancels Christmas parade due to shootings


GRANTS, N.M. – The City of Grants is canceling this year’s annual Christmas light parade, citing the safety of the public and their own officers.

Dozens of floats were supposed to roll down Santa Fe Avenue on Saturday night, but Grants police are holding off until next year after three incidents where someone shot at law enforcement officers.

“It was definitely a difficult decision, but due to the incident that took place on December 8, where law enforcement was shot at in the area of Santa Fe Avenue, we made that decision to protect the citizens of Grants,” says Grants Police Chief Maxine Monte.

She says a New Mexico State Police officer was shot at while making a traffic stop. The officer walked away uninjured, but this was too much for the chief.

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“We’ve had three different incidents where law enforcement was shot at. One was May of 2025, the other one was August of 2025, and then the recent event of December 8 of 2025,” says Monte.

It’s not a risk the chief wants to take, and points out people would be standing exactly where the last shooting happened.

“We have a lot of citizens that attend our parade, and our main concern was that they were out in the open in the middle of the night, and in the same area that our latest shooting took place.”

Grant residents will be able to see the floats during the day on Saturday. But even some daylight isn’t convincing some residents.

“I’ll be staying home,” said Amy Brigdon. “There’s too many people in the world that want to see bad things happen to other people. I’m not one of them.”

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Police still don’t have a suspect for this week’s attempted shooting. Anyone with information is asked to get in touch with the Grants Police Department.



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New Mexico

Colorado wolf rereleased in Grand County after crossing into New Mexico

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Colorado wolf rereleased in Grand County after crossing into New Mexico


Colorado Parks and Wildlife rereleased a wolf into Grand County this week after it had traveled into New Mexico, according to a news release.

The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish captured gray wolf 2403 and returned the animal to Colorado.

Colorado wildlife officials decided to release the wolf in Grand County yesterday because of the proximity to “an unpaired female gray wolf,” nearby prey populations and distance from livestock, according to the release.

“Gray wolf 2403 has been returned to Colorado and released in a location where it can best contribute to CPW’s efforts to establish a self-sustaining wolf population while concurrently attempting to minimize potential wolf-related livestock conflicts,” said acting director of CPW Laura Clellan, according to the release.

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The wolf was once a member of the Copper Creek pack but departed from it this fall.

A memorandum of understanding between Colorado and Arizona, New Mexico and Utah requires that any gray wolves that leave Colorado and enter those states be returned. That was created in part to maintain the integrity of a Mexican wolf recovery program.



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New Mexico man sentenced to nearly 20 years for distributing meth

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New Mexico man sentenced to nearly 20 years for distributing meth


ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A judge sentenced a New Mexico man to nearly 20 years in prison for distributing meth and having guns in his possession to use while doing so.

Court records indicate 43-year-old David Amaya sold meth from a trailer on his parents’ property in Anthony throughout July and August 2024. Agents executed a search warrant Aug. 22 and found 1.18 kilograms of meth, two firearms and ammunition in the trailer and a makeshift bathroom.

Amaya pleaded guilty to possession of meth with intent to distribute it. A judge sentenced him to 235 months in prison.

Once he is out, Amaya will face five years of supervised release.

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The FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office and the Las Cruces Metro Narcotics Task Force investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Williams prosecuted it.



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