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New Mexico secretary of state says she's experiencing harassment after the election

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New Mexico secretary of state says she's experiencing harassment after the election


SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico’s top elections regulator said Tuesday that she has been the target of harassing and threatening comments on social media after affirming President-elect Donald Trump’s national election victory in an attempt to halt conspiracy theories.

New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver shared her concerns as she briefed a legislative panel about administration of the general election and progress toward certifying the vote tally amid a surge in same-day voter registration. She said she plans to contact law enforcement about the threats.

“I am currently experiencing threats, harassment — from even some members of this committee — online,” said Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat who has been subject repeatedly to threats in the past. “And I want to say that thankfully we have a law in place that protects me from this behavior.”

A 2023 state law made it a fourth-degree felony to intimidate a state or local election official.

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After the hearing, Toulouse Oliver said she attempted to “nip some emerging conspiracy theories in the bud” with a post on the social platform X that stated Trump had won outright while acknowledging that some states were still counting votes and fewer voters showed up to the polls this year. In response, she said she was accused of committing treason and told she was “in the crosshairs.”

Toulouse Oliver later switched off public access to that X account — used for political and private conversations — and said she was gathering information to refer the matter to state police and the state attorney general. An official X account for the secretary of state’s office remains public.

Toulouse Oliver accused Republican state Rep. John Block, of Alamogordo, of egging on and “helping to foment the anger and some of the nasty comments online.” She did not cite specific posts.

Block said he too has been a victim on online harassment and “that has no place in this (legislative) body or anywhere else.”

“If it gets to violent threats like you described that you got, I apologize that that is happening to you,” Block said during the committee hearing.

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Toulouse Oliver told lawmakers at the hearing that she’ll advocate for new security measures for state and local election workers to keep their home addresses confidential on government websites. A law enacted in 2023 offers that confidentiality to elected and appointed public officials.

Trump lost the general election for president in New Mexico to Democratic nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris. Democratic candidates were reelected to the state’s three congressional seats and a U.S. Senate seat, while Republicans gained a few seats in legislative races but remain in the state House and Senate minorities.

More than 52,000 people used same-day registration procedures to vote in New Mexico.





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New Mexico

Environmental group, feds and irrigation district reach settlement in silvery minnow suit • Source New Mexico

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Environmental group, feds and irrigation district reach settlement in silvery minnow suit • Source New Mexico


A big fight over a small, endangered fish that lives in the Rio Grande has come to a resolution, as a federal judge in New Mexico OK’d a settlement Tuesday proposed by the parties.

U.S. District of New Mexico Magistrate Judge Gregory Fouratt approved an agreement between WildEarth Guardians, an environmental and conservation nonprofit based in Santa Fe, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and a middle Rio Grande irrigation district.

The deal ends a 2022 lawsuit brought by WildEarth Guardians alleging the federal government mismanaged the Rio Grande and promoted unsustainable water uses, which violated provisions of the Endangered Species Act to restore habitats for the silvery minnow and two other species.

Feds, irrigation district say keep your wheels off of the silvery minnow

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The dual strains of climate change and human diversions for irrigation are contributing to the Rio Grande drying more frequently, especially the crucial stretch of river between Cochiti Dam and Elephant Butte, where silvery minnow live.

The 4-inch long minnow, is unlike most freshwater fish. Silvery minnow directly spawn into the water in the spring, and the fertilized eggs slip downstream, a method more common to marine fish. When the river was slower and shallower, the minnow was prolific along Rio Grande from Española to Gulf of Mexico. Federal and local irrigation projects straightened the river, making it deeper and faster, and built dams that prevented fish from moving freely in the river. Now, the short-lived fish is limited to one reach,which dries almost completely each year. After years of population decline, the fish was named an endangered species in 1994.

The minnow holds an important role as an indicator of the Rio Grande’s health, said Daniel Timmons, the wild rivers program director for Wild Earth Guardians.

“The Rio Grande through Albuquerque used to support sturgeon and catfish that were 200 pounds. And today, the river is barely able to support a 4-inch minnow,” he said. “If it’s not able to support a minnow, it’s not able to support the entire web of life.”

The settlement makes some immediate changes, such as outlining specific provisions of the the Middle Rio Grande Water Conservancy District to fallow 2,500-3,500 acres farmland for the next four years or offer imported Colorado River water to keep in the riverbed.

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Other provisions, such as the agreement to start the process for new federal conservation measures – called a Biological Opinion – will take four years.

While the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be “driving the bus” to produce a new Biological Opinion; there will be more opportunities for public comment as part of the agreement.

That’s unusual, he said, adding that Biological Opinions are often made behind closed doors.

“I’m hopeful the agencies will be more transparent throughout the process and will be engaging the public to make sure it’s more of a participatory process than it has been in the past,” Timmons said.

The federal government also agreed to pay $41,000 for WildEarth Guardian’s legal fees.

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Currently, federal wildlife officials are going to continue using conservation measures from the 2016 Biological Opinion in the interim, said Debra Hill, a supervisory biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Rio Grande Basin.

One of the goals is to make the 87 conservation measures from the 2016 opinion less vague and more focused, she said.

The settlement shows that government agencies will have to work together to address creative solutions as the Rio Grande is expected to shrink further from climate change, she said.

“We are really going to have to figure out how to work with what is limited, and so it’s going to take working together as much as we can,” Hill said.

Hill called the minnow a “canary in a coal mine,” for life on the river.

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“If we’re starting to see that a fish doesn’t have what it needs to survive in the Middle Rio Grande, we need to, as a society, realize that water is the same water that we rely on,” Hill said.

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New Mexico

City councilors introduce new proposal to require A/C in housing units

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City councilors introduce new proposal to require A/C in housing units


An Albuquerque city councilor is sponsoring a new proposal to require all housing units to be equipped with a cooling device that can keep temperatures at or below 80 degrees.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Albuquerque City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn knows requiring cooling devices inside every housing unit in Albuquerque will require some upgrades. But she wants to make sure landlords have enough time to help their tenant beat the summer heat. 

“Everyone deserves to be safe and comfortable in their own homes,” said City Councilor Tammy Fieblekorn.

Fiebelkorn believes that means keeping the thermostat at a reasonable temperature all year round. 

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“We have vulnerable populations, seniors, young people, children, people with medical problems. They just cannot afford to sit in 90 plus degree temperatures in their own homes,” said Fieblekorn. 

Fiebelkorn is sponsoring a new proposal to require all housing units in Albuquerque be equipped with a cooling device that can keep temperatures at or below 80 degrees.

“And I’ll point out that 80 degrees is still pretty warm, but that is just the baseline that everyone in our community should expect, no matter how much or how little they can afford to pay for rent,” Fiebelkorn said. 

According to National Weather Service data, the average summer temperatures in Albuquerque are nearly 3 degrees higher than in 1970.

After a record heat wave in 2023, Fieblekorn says it’s time government leaders step in to keep Burqueños cool.

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“We’re looking at older, older buildings that were built under old building codes under old requirements when it wasn’t so hot before climate change started really impacting Albuquerque. We didn’t need this, but we do now,” said Fiebelkorn.

Fiebelkorn says it’s hard to know how many housing units do not currently have some type of cooling device.

“More than 43% of Albuquerque’s apartment buildings were constructed before 1980, and many of these units have not been retrofitted with central air conditioning,” said Alan Laseck with the Apartment Association of New Mexico. 

He suggests that the 80-degree threshold will essentially ban the use of swamp coolers, and A/C conversions typically range between $5,000 to $15,000 per unit.

 “We absolutely agree that cooling is very important in Albuquerque, but the language in this ordinance is too restrictive,” said Laseck. 

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Fiebelkorn believes cooling is just something that can’t be negotiated.

“I’m sorry if there’s anyone that has that concern, but this is really just a baseline requirement for humans to be able to stay in a unit,” said Fieblekorn. 

Fiebelkorn’s proposal would change the city’s uniform building code, which Laseck says would also impact single-family homes.

Fiebelkorn’s proposal is still in the committee process, and likely won’t reach the full council for a vote until December.

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New Mexico

Patrick Allen steps down as Secretary of Health – Gina DeBlassie will serve as interim cabinet secretary – Office of the Governor – Michelle Lujan Grisham

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Patrick Allen steps down as Secretary of Health – Gina DeBlassie will serve as interim cabinet secretary – Office of the Governor – Michelle Lujan Grisham


SANTA FE – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced today that Patrick M. Allen, secretary of the New Mexico Department of Health will step down from his position at the end of the day. Allen has served in the administration for approximately two years.

“Pat has been a dedicated public servant, and I’m grateful for his contributions as secretary for the Department of Health. I wish him well in his next endeavor,” said Lujan Grisham.

Gina DeBlassie, the governor’s health policy advisor, will serve as interim cabinet secretary of the New Mexico Department of Health.

DeBlassie brings more than 30 years of healthcare expertise. Throughout her career, she has been a driving force behind legislation to improve healthcare access across New Mexico. Her leadership efforts have been instrumental in establishing the Health Care Authority and the Rural Health Care Delivery Fund.

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Prior to joining Gov. Lujan Grisham’s administration, DeBlassie served as chief operating officer for a national All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly provider program. There, she managed multi-state operations spearheading the expansion of programs aimed at bettering the lives of seniors.

DeBlassie holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix and has contributed her expertise to multiple non-profit boards.



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