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Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Madrid, Wilson Battle To Wire; Pearce, Udall Re-Elected

By Tim Korte/
Associated Press
      Incumbent Republican Heather Wilson battled to save her seat, holding a tiny lead early Wednesday against Democratic challenger Patricia Madrid as one of the nastiest campaigns in New Mexico history went down to the wire.
    It was razor close as the clock ticked past midnight. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Wilson moved ahead by the slimmest of margins with 50.33 percent of the vote compared with 49.67 for Madrid — a difference of 1,318 votes.
    Wilson told cheering supporters at a midnight rally she was confident about winning, predicting they'd celebrate by toasting breakfast orange juice. She complained about problems at some Republican-dominated precincts and asked her faithful to hang tight.
    "We want to make sure every vote that gets cast gets counted,'' she said.
    Additional results were expected in the wee hours as Bernalillo County election workers continued to process ballots. Six precincts remained, but prospects were unclear for three unreported Sandoval County units.
    "We have to wait a little bit longer,'' Madrid told cheering Democratic supporters shortly before midnight.
    A win for Madrid, New Mexico's attorney general, would make her the first Democrat to win and the first from either party to unseat an incumbent since the Albuquerque-area district was created in 1968.
    But Wilson, a Republican seeking a fifth term, has survived close contests before in her Democratic-leaning district.
    Wilson had to overcome public distaste for the war in Iraq and GOP scandals in Congress.
    "It is time for change, but you can't change Washington until you change the people you send to Washington,'' Madrid said during the race.
    Elsewhere in New Mexico, Republican Steve Pearce earned a third term representing the 2nd District over Democratic challenger Al Kissling and Democrat Tom Udall easily won a fifth term over GOP challenger Ron Dolin in the 3rd District.
    With 46 percent of 2nd District precincts reporting, Pearce had 63 percent of the vote compared with 36 percent for Kissling. And in the 3rd District with 57 percent of precincts reporting, Udall had 70 percent of the vote compared with 29 percent for Dolin.
    The Madrid-Wilson race was a nasty campaign that included months of caustic television attack advertisements aired by both sides.
    It was one of New Mexico's most bitter and expensive campaigns, with the candidates and their outside allies combining to spend more than $11.5 million — including $3.5 million by the national parties in the closing weeks.
    Madrid, working from the national Democratic Party's playbook, framed the race as a referendum on the Iraq war and the Bush administration's national security policies. She went after Wilson for voting to authorize force in Iraq.
    The strategy appeared to be warranted by polls that found only 38 percent of Albuquerque voters approve of Bush, the same percentage as nationwide. Across New Mexico, 52 percent of those polled thought the Iraq war was a mistake.
    Nationally, Democrats targeted Wilson in their bid to pick up enough seats to gain control of the House.
    Other than a visit by President Bush at a fundraiser early in the campaign, Wilson distanced herself from the administration. She portrayed herself as independent and focused on local issues like defense spending — critical for Kirtland Air Force Base and Sandia National Laboratories.
    Throughout the 1st District, Democrats hold an advantage of some 35,000 voters — about 46 percent to 35 percent.

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