The election for Albuquerque Mayor is on November 2. The Albuquerque Journal has now published its front-page customary Mayor candidate profiles and candidate “Question and Answer” articles on all 3 candidates. On Tuesday, September 28, it published the profile of Republican Eddy Aragon, on Wednesday, September 29, it published the profile of Democrat Sheriff Manny Gonzales and on Thursday, September 30 it published the profile of Democrat Incumbent Mayor Tim Keller.
Below are the links to the Albuquerque Journal’s profiles and “Question and Answer” articles in the order which they were published.
EDDY ARAGON
Conservative radio show host takes on Dems
https://www.abqjournal.com/2433188/radio-show-host-wants-to-be-city-manager.html
“Q&A mayoral candidate Edward Joseph Aragon Jr.”
https://www.abqjournal.com/2433178/qa-mayoral-candidate-edward-joseph-aragon-jr.html
SHERIFF MANNY GONZALES
Gonzales vows to run Albuquerque in bipartisan fashion
https://www.abqjournal.com/2433475/gonzales-seeking-to-run-albuquerque-in-bipartisan-fashion.html
Q&A mayoral candidate Manuel Gonzales III
https://www.abqjournal.com/2433186/qa-mayoral-candidate-manuel-gonzales-iii.html
MAYOR TIM KELLER
‘I’ve learned’: Keller touts real-world experience
https://www.abqjournal.com/2433925/keller-highlighting-experience-as-he-seeks-second-term.html
Q&A mayoral candidate Tim Keller
https://www.abqjournal.com/2433190/qa-mayoral-candidate-tim-keller-2.html
COMMENTARY AND ANALYSIS
All 3 of the Journal profile articles were very positive as to each candidate without getting too aggressive. The articles avoided confrontation and declined to address too few controversial issues allowing the candidates to place their own positive spin on their backgrounds. The “Question and Answer” articles were far more informative and showed a clear difference in the approaches each candidate will take once elected.
You can be expected that on Sunday, October 3 or Sunday, October 10, the Albuquerque Journal will publish its endorsement of one of the 3. The Journal tends to endorse incumbents and city hall observers believe the Journal will endorse Mayor Tim Keller for a second term concluding that now is not the time to change leadership at city hall.
THOSE DAMN POLLS
Complicating things for Sheriff Manny Gonzales and Eddy Aragon is that confidential sources are saying that a poll is circulating showing Tim Keller with 57.3 % support, Manny Gonzales at 23.2% and Eddy Aragon at 16.1% and 3.4% undecided. There are no details provided as to how many were polled, when the poll was taken, how it was taken nor the margin of error.
Notwithstanding, on September 12, 2020, the Albuquerque Journal published a poll it commissioned that showed nearly three years into his first term as Albuquerque’s Mayor, Tim Keller had nearly the same high level of support that he had less than 1 year after he took office. Among likely city voters, 60% approve of Keller’s performance, 22% disapproved of his performance and 19% had mixed feeling or did not know. That is close to the results of a 2018 Journal Poll that found Keller had a 61% approval rating after his first nine months in office, when many officeholders still experience “honeymoon” ratings. A link to the Journal article is here:
https://www.abqjournal.com/1495901/mayor-keller-maintains-his-high-approval-rating.html
A word of caution is in order as to polling. Four weeks in a political campaign with a low voter turnout, which is expected, is an eternity in politics and anything can happen. Keller is sitting on $524,709 in funding and will be unleashing a relentless media ad campaign spending the lion’s share of that in 4 weeks. Unless Gonzales and Aragon can raise upwards of $300,000 each for a reasonable TV buy, it’s likely the Tim Keller will be elected to a second 4-year term on November 2, unless there is an October surprise that changes the outcome of the election and forces a runoff.
CONCLUSION
The election is Tuesday November 2. Please vote.
Links to published blog article profiles when the candidates announced are here: