Bregman looks to second term after victory

Democratic voters gave Sam Bregman another term as 2nd Judicial District Attorney on Tuesday in the state’s most expensive primary contest.

Unofficial results showed Bregman with a 57% majority over his Democratic challenger, former U.S. Attorney of New Mexico Damon Martinez, who had received about 43% of the primary vote at the Journal’s press time.

The Democratic nominee will face no Republican opposition in the general election.

Bregman looked forward to his next term after his victory. He said he plans to continue a robust prosecution schedule initiated in his first term.

“We have tried more cases and convicted more cases and convicted more felons of violent crimes than anytime in the last five years,” he said Tuesday.

Bregman also said he plans to continue pressing to hold people accused of violent crimes in jail while they await trial.

He added that he plans to increase prosecutions for fentanyl traffickers and offer better treatment options for people addicted to the opioid drug.

“We have 500 open cases of trafficking fentanyl in our office right now,” he said. “I see that doubling in no time at all.”

Bregman and Martinez ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in campaign contributions in any primary contest in New Mexico.

As of Tuesday, Bregman had received $472,117 in contributions compared to $352,281 for Martinez, according to the state Secretary of State’s website.

A prominent defense attorney and former chairman of the state Democratic Party, Bregman was not elected to his current post as district attorney.

Instead, he was appointed in January 2023 by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to fill out the remaining term of his predecessor, Raúl Torrez, who took office that month as the state’s attorney general.

Bregman and Martinez both were among 14 attorneys who applied for the post after Torrez won the attorney general contest in November 2022.

Martinez issued a written statement Tuesday conceding the race and congratulating Bregman for “a strong race.”

“I have spoken with him to concede the election and congratulate him myself,” Martinez said. “I wish him success in his efforts, because our community needs him to be successful.” Martinez also expressed gratitude to his supporters.

Bregman said under his direction his office also has increased diversion programs that offer treatment as an alternative to criminal prosecutions for drug crimes.

Bregman also said he plans to focus on juvenile crime.

“Juvenile crime is something that’s just intolerable at the current rates,” he said. “We need to do everything we can to stem the tide of juvenile violence and crimes committed by juveniles.”

When he was first appointed to the office, Bregman said he did not intend to run for a second term. But he announced in June 2023 that he planned to run to keep his job.

Martinez, who announced in October his bid to unseat Bregman in the primary, could not be reached for comment late Tuesday.