The two most competitive races in New Mexico are getting national attention this week: a Republican candidate is going to Texas to speak at Trump’s midterm convention; and Democratic campaigns are welcoming high profile politicians to the Land of Enchantment.
The race for New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District, currently held by Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D), has become a high-stakes showdown that could determine the future of the House majority. A recent KOB 4 poll conducted by Survey USA has Vasquez up by 3 points, within the poll’s margin of error, in a district that voted for Trump in 2024.
The Republicans’ slim majority in the House could be determined by whether or not candidate Greg Cunningham can flip Rep. Vasquez’s seat. Cunningham’s been endorsed by Trump and other high profile Republicans.
Trump’s own approval ratings across the country and in New Mexico have hit record lows ahead of this year’s midterm convention. The president has lost support from voters on key issues since taking office including the economy and the war in Iran.
Cunningham heads to Dallas
Following a contentious campaign event for Cunningham featuring House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Lousiana), the Republican National Committee announced on Sept. 5 that Cunningham would be the only candidate from New Mexico to address the Republican midterm convention in Dallas.
He’s one of only a few Republican candidates in competitive races who will be attending the RNC, and the first New Mexico Republican to address the GOP since former Gov. Susana Martinez spoke at the RNC in 2012, according to his campaign.
Cunningham is expected to give his remarks on the second day of the “Trump-a-palooza,” Sept. 10. According to the Albuquerque Journal, Cunningham will talk about Democratic policies in New Mexico.
Democrats bring in their own big names
Meanwhile, Rep. Vasquez and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deb Haaland will be joined by two national political figures to campaign for them this weekend: Rep. Ro Khanna (D-California) and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
On Sept. 12, Rep. Khanna will help launch a canvassing campaign in the South Valley neighborhood of Albuquerque. And the next day, Sept. 13, Vasquez and Haaland will speak alongside Buttigieg in Las Cruces.
“Former Sec. Buttigieg & Rep. Khanna notified our team they were coming to New Mexico and asked how they could support our campaign in the final stretch,” wrote Dylan McArthur, Deb Haaland’s campaign manager, in a statement to Courier New Mexico.
Rep. Khanna has grown in national prominence through his recent work on the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which Trump signed into law in November 2025.
Reps. Khanna and Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) introduced a new version of the bill on Aug. 5, the Epstein Files Transparency Act II, that would allow state attorney generals and Epstein survivors to sue for records. Rep. Teresea Leger Fernandez (D-New Mexico) and Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico) are co-leading the bill’s passage with the support of more than 100 other lawmakers.
McArthur said the campaign events will feature discussion of policies related to health care, education, public safety, and the economy.
“While Donald Trump continues to make us hungrier, sicker, and poorer, Deb will move New Mexico forward to address our biggest challenges,” wrote McArthur.
According to the Albuquerque Journal, Republican gubernatorial candidate Gregg Hull will not join Cunningham and a small group of New Mexican Republicans at the convention. Although national aggregates still consider the race to be “Safe Democratic,” according to recent polling from the Albuquerque Journal Haaland’s margins may be getting smaller.
