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Friday, October 14, 2005

Madrid Declares She's Running for Wilson's Seat

By Barry Massey/
Associated Press
      SANTA FE — Attorney General Patricia Madrid announced Friday that she will run for the congressional seat held by Republican Heather Wilson.
    "I intend to seek election to Congress because change is desperately needed in Washington,'' Madrid, a Democrat, said in a statement.
    She will file campaign papers next week with the Federal Election Commission. Madrid must form a campaign committee that can raise and spend money in accordance with federal law. Money raised by Madrid through state campaign committees cannot be used in her bid for the Albuquerque-area 1st Congressional District seat.
    Madrid, who is serving her second four-year term, cannot run for re-election to a third term.
    Wilson won election in 2004 to a fourth two-year term. She defeated Democrat Richard Romero, who at the time was president pro tem of the state Senate. Wilson also defeated Romero in the 2002 general election.
    Wilson first won the seat in a 1998 special election after the death of Republican Steve Schiff, who was elected to five terms. Before him, Republican Manuel Lujan Jr. spent 20 years in the seat.
    Nationally, Democrats have targeted Wilson in hopes of chipping away at the GOP majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.
    Democrats hold a voter registration advantage in the 1st District that includes Bernalillo County, which favored Democrat John Kerry in the last presidential election.
    Wilson had cash reserves of $732,000 in her re-election campaign account at the end of September, according to the latest campaign finance report filed with the FEC.
    In declaring her plans to run for Congress, Madrid criticized Wilson and the Republican-led House of Representatives and White House.
    "The marriage of special interest politics and the Republican leadership of George Bush and Tom DeLay and the complicity of Heather Wilson have failed New Mexicans,'' Madrid said. "This culture of incompetence, corruption and cronyism has created embarrassing failures and irresponsible deficit spending.''
    DeLay has been charged in Texas with conspiracy and money laundering in a state campaign finance investigation. DeLay has denied any wrongdoing, but the charges have caused him to give up his post as House majority leader.
    A spokeswoman for Wilson's re-election campaign, Jane Altwies, did not fire back at Madrid. Altwies said Wilson was "focused on her congressional duties and representing the people of the 1st Congressional District of New Mexico. She has always run a successful campaign and intends to continue that.''
    Madrid said she was running for Congress "to restore accountability in Washington, D.C.'' and said her record as attorney general was a "testament to the fact that I am not afraid to take on special interests, no matter how big or how entrenched.''
    She pointed to her efforts to regulate lenders who make high-cost payday and car title loans. Madrid recently proposed regulations to cap interest rates and impose other limits on payday lenders. Her action came after unsuccessfully trying to get the Legislature for several years to regulate the industry.
    The 1st District campaign in 2004 was among the most expensive congressional races in the nation.
    Wilson and Romero spent more than $5 million combined on their primary and general election campaigns. Wilson won re-election with 54 percent of the vote and her campaign spent nearly $3.4 million.