Republican candidates messed up in New Mexico for the 2026 senate race.
The conservative Washington Examiner reported Thursday that no GOP candidate will appear on the ballot for the U.S. Senate race because they failed to meet all requirements.
New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver (D) ruled that Republican candidate Christopher Vanden Heuvel is disqualified from the ballot after failing to provide enough signatures to get on the primary ballot.
The Albuquerque Journal reported it is the first time in modern history that a Republican won't even appear on the ballot
It means that Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.) will enjoy an easy election in November. He does have a primary opponent in U.S. Air Force veteran Matt Dodson, but he has been unable to raise over $10,000 as of the last Federal Election Commission (FEC) filing.
“He’ll continue earning their support on the campaign trail while doing the job they elected him to do by lowering costs and delivering results for New Mexico,” said Adan Serna, the campaign spokesperson. “That commitment does not change based on who else is [on] the ballot.”
Republican Carlton Pennington, who was running in the 1st Congressional District, is also disqualified, as is Republican gubernatorial candidate Belinda Robertson.
U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), who represents the 2nd Congressional District, also dodged a primary challenge from Thomas Wakely after he, too, was disqualified from the ballot, the Journal reported. He will now face off against one of two Republicans who qualified for the GOP primary.
The voter signature requirement demands that each candidate turn in a nominating petition “signed by a number of voters equal to at least two percent (2 percent) of the total vote of the candidate’s party in the state or congressional district (based on the total votes cast for all of the party’s candidates for governor, at the last preceding primary election in which the party’s candidate for governor was nominated).”
