Albuquerque mayoral candidate Tim Keller’s showing in Tuesday’s election was noted by The Washington Post last week.
Keller, the state auditor, prevailed as the top vote-getter in the mayor’s race, but it wasn’t enough to avoid a runoff with the second-place finisher, City Councilor Dan Lewis.
The Post reported in a piece on its website that three candidates backed by the progressive network built by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., either won their races or advanced to the next round in elections in Birmingham, Ala., Los Angeles and Albuquerque.
The group, Our Revolution, issued a statement last week congratulating Keller and noting that Our Revolution New Mexico supported Keller by volunteering on his campaign and speaking to voters.
“Tim is the only candidate for mayor who reached the threshold of small donations to qualify for a publicly funded campaign,” the organization said in a news release. “That achievement demonstrates Tim’s broad support with Albuquerque’s working families and means that he’ll be accountable to the people, not big business, when he’s elected mayor.”
Our Revolution endorsed Keller in August.
“Our Revolution will reclaim democracy for the working people of our country by harnessing the transformative energy of the ‘political revolution,'” the group says on its website. “Through supporting a new generation of progressive leaders, empowering millions to fight for progressive change and elevating the political consciousness, Our Revolution will transform American politics to make our political and economic systems once again responsive to the needs of working families.”
Runoff schedule: City Clerk Natalie Howard has rolled out the calendar for the upcoming runoff election.
Besides the mayoral runoff, voters in District 5 will elect a city councilor on Nov. 14. That race is between Robert Aragon and Cynthia Borrego.
Key dates to remember:
• The deadline to register to vote in the runoff is 5 p.m. Oct. 17. Among the places you can register are the Bernalillo County Clerk’s Office and online through the New Mexico Secretary of State’s website.
• Early voting will be held from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays from Oct. 25 to Nov. 10.
As publicly financed candidates, Keller and Borrego will get an infusion of cash from the city for their campaigns. Keller will receive 33 cents for every registered voter in Albuquerque, while Borrego will get 33 cents for every registered voter in her district.
Martin Salazar: msalazar@abqjournal.com
