Domenici’s Retirement: New Mexico’s political terrain shaken up

By now, most readers of this blog have heard that Senator Pete Domenici is not running for re-election in 2008. This is big news not just in New Mexico, but nationwide, since this makes it increasingly certain that Democrats will retain control of the US Senate. That said, what does Domenici’s retirement mean? Well, Heather Wilson has already jumped in to the race, but that was almost a certainty as she was going to be redistricted out of her seat soon anyway.
It is also quite possible that Reps. Steve Pearce or Tom Udall may jump into the race as well. My hunch is that Wilson has the best chance of winning a statewide race among these three because she is the “not too hot, not too cold candidate.” (Pearce may be too conservative for the north and Udall may be too liberal for the south)
Of course, some are saying that Richardson will jump into the race which means he’d have to be considered the front-runner. Personally, I’d like to see former-governor Gary Johnson jump into the race….