Helping out in Las Cruces

Over the past weekend, Kelly, Cameron & I went to the Las Cruces area to see some family and to help out the campaign of a great State Rep., Nate Cote. Nate is running for re-election to district 53, which was long held by Republican Terry Marquardt. Nate's is a swing district, so he has a lot of walking to do every two years. I walked door-to-door for Nate on Saturday and attended a barbecue for him on Sunday. The folks who came out were very enthusiastic about Nate and about the future of Democrats down south.

One of the most important reasons to hold onto seat like Nate's - other than the fact that he does a great job - is the way the New Mexico Legislature allocates seats in committees to Democrats and Republicans. Though Democrats have the majority now are are very likely to retain in in the next legislature, if the majority shrinks more than a few seats, committee make-up changes throughout the House. This means that the majority is far less useful as committees no longer have decided Democratic advantages. So, by holding onto Nate's seat and several other swing seats in the state, we do a great deal of good for the effectiveness of the Democratic Majority in the House.

I have a few photos from the trip: