With the Albuquerque runoff elections just weeks away, incumbent Mayor Tim Keller has earned an important endorsement in his race against former Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White.
The New Mexico Working Families Party announced its endorsement of Keller on Thursday, Nov. 20, after its initial endorsement of former U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico, Alex Uballez, during the regular election.
Austin Weahkee, the interim state director for the NM-WFP, said this endorsement shows voters who supported Uballez that the organization is not going to “leave their values out.”
The endorsement of Keller came over two weeks after the results of the regular election were announced on Nov. 4.
“I think we've been clear about what our goal has been basically the entire time,” Weahkee said. “We're here now because early voting is going to start here pretty soon, absentee ballots are already out and being sent in; we think that this is a good time to capitalize on some voter attention.”
The issues that Weahkee said are important for the NM-WFP include supporting unions and affordable housing.
“Our values really are working for the working families of New Mexico, making sure that we have policies that support our unions and push back against the billionaires from owning every corner of our city and pushing out working people. It lies in affordable housing, and it lies in making sure that we don't have collaboration with a fascist regime,” Weahkee said.
The NM-WFP is focused on a platform of affordability, jobs, homelessness and right relation to indigenous land in the city, according to a press release by the organization.
The release also states the the NM-WFP is looking to have a mayor and city council that protects renters and sacred sites, improves how Albuquerque treats the unhoused and creates good union job opportunities.
The endorsement could help open up an important voting bloc for Keller, as Uballez was able to draw in 19% of voters during the regular election, with Keller getting 36% and White receiving 31%. Uballez’s campaign was targeted mostly at young voters, making multiple campaign stops on the University of New Mexico’s campus to talk to students and getting as much as 60% of votes cast at one UNM precinct, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
Uballez himself has not yet endorsed any candidate in the runoff election, but has made endorsements in the two city council races that have also gone to a runoff, Stephanie Telles in district one and Teresa Garcia.
Telles will face Joshua Neal for the district one seat, and Garcia will face incumbent councilor Klarissa Peña in district three.
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The NM-WFP has also endorsed Telles and Garcia for their respective races.
“That is where the actual change is going to happen with those two. Should those two win their races, it will sign a major shift towards working people,” Weahkee said.
The endorsement comes at a key moment for Keller as election day for the runoff is Dec. 9 and early voting takes place Dec. 1 through 6.
Jaden McKelvey-Francis is the editor-in-chief of the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at editorinchief@dailylobo.com or on X @jadenmckelvey
