| Albuquerque, October 14–Former Congressman Steve Pearce has submitted the following comments to the Citizen Redistricting Committee regarding proposed redistricting maps: |
Former Congressman Steve Pearce Comments on Redistricting Maps In reviewing the maps that have been submitted for the congressional districts, I would like to comment on Map A and Map H. While representing New Mexico for 14 years in Congress, I was been able to see the state and its congressional districts very closely for an extended period of time. Having been in Washington, helping formulate policy, I also have seen the implications of party politics at its best and at its worst. From what I have learned and observed, I always believed that New Mexico Congressional Districts were shaped pretty well for the following reasons: The districts do not have any significant gerrymandering. The northern 40% of the state is CD-3, the southern 58% is CD-2 and CD-1 was centered around Albuquerque. Albuquerque, as the major population center of the state should always have a representative in Congress. CD-1 and CD-3 are heavily weighted towards the Democrats but that is reflective of the registration in those areas. Most people overlook that CD-2 is far from being a Republican stronghold. Neither Hispanic Democrats nor Hispanic voters are disenfranchised in CD-2 under Map A. The registration is as follows: 38% Democrat38% Republican24% other registrations. 55.8% Hispanic The district has been and will continue to be a majority minority district under Map A with only 35% of the population being white. The voters of the 2nd District share traditional values across racial lines, party lines and any other line used to describe voters. They are pro-family, pro-life, pro-gun and pro-economic growth. For these reasons, I strongly recommend Map A, which will keep the basic alignment in place. I agree with one comment made concerning Zuni Pueblo. It is split between the 2nd and 3rd congressional districts, the vast majority being in the 2nd district. I would make a minor adjustment and place Zuni fully in the 2nd district. There are many reasons to oppose Map H. I will go into detail on a two of those reasons. First, the description of Map H is disingenuous in that it seeks to create the impression that Hispanic voters are disenfranchised somehow by the current alignment of CD-2. Quoting from the comments on the Redistricting Commission Website about Map H it reads: CREATING A SOLID HISPANIC VOTING AGE MAJORITY DISTRICT This map brings the Hispanic Voting Age Population in CD2 up to 55.9%…. …Since the creation of a southern NM congressional district over a half century ago, only one out of twenty-six elections has been won by a Hispanic candidate. This is not for lack of trying. A Hispanic major party candidate was the losing candidate in nine of the last fifteen elections in CD2. (Melanie Aranda, South Valley resident, Submitted on: 10/1/2021) This quote makes it seem that the district is unbalanced against Hispanic candidates which Map H will supposedly cure. The truth is that for much of my 14-year tenure in Congress, CD-2 was and still is a majority minority district with the population breaking down as follows: 55.8% Hispanic 65% overall minority 35% white. The voting population breaks down as follow:51.5% Hispanic60.7% overall minority39.3% white votersThat is hardly an unbalanced district, which disenfranchises Hispanic or minority voters. As Melanie Aranda’s comments prove, the voters have not just rejected Hispanic candidates, they have rejected white Progressives also. It is not a lack of Hispanic voters; it is that the Progressive Democrat candidates do not align with the traditional values of the Hispanic voters in the district. The Democrat Hispanic candidates who have been defeated lose for the same reason white Democrats lose in the 2nd district – they do not align with the values of the conservative Hispanic voters of southern New Mexico. But the developers of Map H can’t admit that so they try to make it sound like the district is stacked against Hispanic voters. Disingenuous. Conservative Hispanic voters are business owners, faith leaders and community pillars in the southern NM communities where they live and they will be disenfranchised under Map H. Those pushing Map H do not mind disenfranchising these Hispanic voters who are pro-life, pro-gun, pro-faith and pro-opportunity. Second, the Movida, known as Congressional Concept H is the sort of slick political move that Speaker Egolf envisioned when he spoke after the 2020 November election: “So this is the last election for New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District with a map that looks like it looks now,” Egolf said. “So next time it’ll be a different district and we’ll have to see what that means for Republican chances to hold it.” (AP article by Susan Montoya Bryan, November 5, 2020) Speaker Egolf envisions a one-party state, with no opposition voices. Several one-party states with no opposition voices come to mind; states like Venezuela, Cuba or Russia. No jobs, no food, no hope and no opposition party. The New Mexico state government is basically already a one-party state. It has been 90 years since an opposition party controlled both houses of the New Mexico legislature. (The Republican governors do not pass legislation; they can only sign or veto bills.) The policies and laws now in effect reflect a constant movement toward Progressive Democrat agendas for nine decades. These policies place NM dead last in education, jobs, fighting crime and other key measures, precisely because of one party rule. The system is corrupt, controlled by special interests and feudal lords. Corruption breeds incompetence and incompetence breeds a loss of hope. The state is seeing an exodus because people do not see any hope that things will improve. We have exported our young for decades as they looked for higher paying jobs. In Congress, the representation has been much more balanced. Senators Dominici and Bingaman served side by side for over 30 years. Regardless of which party was in power, New Mexico had a united key voice and the state benefitted greatly. During my 14 years in Washington, when Republicans were in the majority or controlled the White House, I was able to affect policy because I was in the discussions. These were policies that impacted New Mexico greatly – issues like Native American Housing, Base Realignment and Closures (BRAC), the funding and continued mission of Sandia and Los Alamos Labs, resources to keep WIPP open and upgraded, highway funding and many other issues. Conversely, when Democrats were in the majority, New Mexico’s Democrat representatives were able to impact the decisions. Some historians would argue that New Mexico was in its most powerful position in Washington during the time when the state had Republican Senator, Pete Dominici, Democrat Senator Jeff Bingaman, Republican congressional representatives, Heather Wilson and Steve Pearce and Democrat Congressman, Tom Udall. We did not always agree on policy issues, but New Mexicans always came first before politics. The Egolf Movida, Congressional Concept H, if it is used, will probably mean that New Mexico has no voice when Republicans are in the majority in Congress or control the White House. That might be the objective of New Mexico Democrat leaders but New Mexico would pay a steep price during the decades to come when the political pendulum swings to the Republican side. I strongly recommend against Map H. I strongly endorse Congressional Concept A. Out of the 435 House seats, CD-2 is truly one of the few toss-up seats in the entire country. More than 400 seats are heavily loaded toward one party or the other. Instead of making CD-2 like the rest of the gerrymandered districts nationwide, it should be held up as the model. To win in that district requires full representation of all voices. No matter which party is in power, one of the great factors in our success as a nation is protecting the minority voice. Both parties need the balancing debates and votes. Map H makes it appear that Democrats don’t believe their ideas can win so they have to rig the game in the district that is competitive. It is time to stop the rigging and focus on how to improve education, stop the crime, create new industries, jobs and careers. Reject Map H and adopt Map A. I submit this with best regards for your work on the commission. Sincerely,  Steve Pearce Congressman, NM-2 (2003-2008 & 2011 – 2018) |
