New Mexico
Bill to end detention of asylum seekers in New Mexico heads to Senate floor – NM Political Report
The Senate Judiciary Committee passed the bill that would prohibit New Mexico counties from holding contracts that allow immigrant detention by a vote of 5-2. SB 145, sponsored by state Sen. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, D-Albuquerque, would prohibit public bodies from entering into intergovernmental service agreements to detain individuals for federal civil immigration violations. The bill […]
The Senate Judiciary Committee passed the bill that would prohibit New Mexico counties from holding contracts that allow immigrant detention by a vote of 5-2.
SB 145, sponsored by state Sen. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, D-Albuquerque, would prohibit public bodies from entering into intergovernmental service agreements to detain individuals for federal civil immigration violations. The bill would also require the public bodies already engaged in such a contract to terminate it within the 60 or 120-day contract provision.
Three New Mexico counties, Otero, Cibola and Torrance, hold such agreements with for-profit detention centers. Sedillo Lopez spoke of what she called “harsh and inhumane” conditions at the three facilities.
Sophia Genovese, senior attorney for New Mexico Immigrant Law Center, said the economic impacts of the bill have been overstated by county officials who speak during public comment. She said that all three facilities also house individuals held by the U.S. Marshals Service and county officials and that the number of immigration detainees is smaller than the other populations. She said the bill would not force the closure of the three facilities; it would end their ability to hold individuals in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, said he is concerned about the “deplorable” conditions the individuals, who are seeking asylum, reportedly experience and said he worried that if this bill is enacted and it prohibits ICE from housing individuals in its custody in New Mexico, that the asylum seekers will be housed in facilities in Texas where they might be treated worse due to the anti-immigrant political rhetoric by state officials.
Genovese said that she has worked in facilities housing asylum seekers across the country and that New Mexico has “some of the worst facilities I’ve ever seen.” She said New Mexico is nationally recognized for its “horrific conditions.”
“New Mexico is a welcoming state for the most part, but our facilities are anything but that. So a comparison of our facilities being better, that is absolutely not the case,” she said.
The bill heads next to the Senate floor.
SANTA FE, N.M. — Former New Mexico Public Regulation Commissioner Jim Ellison is running for governor as a Republican, he announced on social media Tuesday.
Ellison is running on affordability, opportunity and trust in government as the key points of his campaign. His experience includes serving on the NMPRC in 2023 and 2024.
“New Mexico deserves leadership that listens, acts, and delivers results. Our state has enormous potential, but too often that potential is held back by policies that don’t serve everyday New Mexicans,” he said on his website. “I’m running to bring practical solutions, honest accountability, and a renewed focus on the public interest.”
A Georgia native, Ellison has lived in New Mexico for 20 years and currently lives in the Albuquerque area with his wife and two children.
Ellison is aiming to get 5,000 signatures by Feb. 2, to appear on the primary ballot with at least three other Republicans who have announced their candidacy.
Ultra Health CEO Duke Rodriguez announced his campaign in December and recently confirmed to KOB 4 that he received enough signatures to appear on the primary ballot. Rio Rancho Mayor Gregg Hull and New Mexico State Sen. Steve Lanier are also running.
Three Democrats are running – Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman, Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and Former Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A successful University of New Mexico Lobo athletics season and the athletics director’s departure has culminated in players and coaches making moves.
The moves follow a successful 2025 season and the departure of athletics director Fernando Lovo.
Running back coach John Johnson, special teams coordinator Daniel Da Prato and wide receiver coach Colin Lockett are all leaving the Lobos after just one season. Johnson is headed to Iowa State while Da Prato is expected to join Minnesota and Lockett is headed to UCLA, all for the same jobs.
Johnson’s Lobo running backs ran for more than 1,400 yards. Da Prato’s special teams finished top-five nationally in kickoff returns.
Running back D.J. McKinney entered the portal, he confirmed on social media the day the portal officially opened. McKinney rushed for 464 yards and seven touchdowns with the Lobos.
Two players who received all-Mountain West Conference recognition also made moves. All-Mountain West tight-end Dorian Thomas, who caught for touchdowns for the Lobos, entered the portal. Meanwhile, all-Mountain West honorable mention punter Daniel Hughes is set to leave.
Others set to leave include:
- Cole Welliver, backup quarterback who played in one game
- Landon Williams, defensive end who graduated from La Cueva High School
- Randolph Kpai, senior linebacker who is at the end of his college football career without a waiver
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