What preliminary polls seem to say…a majority of New Mexicans are okay with failure

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” (New Mexico voters apparently) The source of this quote is often said to be Albert Einstein, but if newly-released polls for New Mexico Gov. and other statewide offices are to be believed, New Mexico voters seem to think that the party that has dominated New Mexico politics since 1929 (the Democrats) is doing a fabulous job.

New Mexico DOES have a massive $2.5 billion surplus thanks largely to the oil and gas industry which many Democrats love to hate and which they would like to get rid of.  I won’t recount all the myriad ways in which New Mexico badly trails other states in terms of policy-influenced outcomes, but it is not pretty. New Mexico trails nearly every other state on most major economic, COVID, education, and crime policies.

Are New Mexicans simply resigned to failing relative to other states? Do they feel comfortable knowing that 40% of the State budget comes from an industry (oil and gas) that the ruling party both in NM and nationally wishes to destroy?

Do they care that young people are moving out of state to find jobs, better schools, and less crime?

Do they care that Michelle Lujan Grisham unnecessarily locked their children out of school for over a year with nothing to show for it  but massive learning loss?

Do they care that New Mexico ALREADY has a doctor shortage and that a newly-passed medical malpractice law will only worsen the situation.

New Mexico is an extremely unique place for many reasons: great weather, beauty, outdoor activities, and culture, but it also seems to have a uniquely-self destructive bent to its politics. None of this is to say that one or the other political party has all the answers, but that over 90 years of single-party legislative rule is not working.