Southwest ABQ voters to decide between newcomer, City Council incumbent

Voters in southwest Albuquerque will have a choice Dec. 9 between a three-term City Council incumbent and a professional advocate for survivors of domestic violence.

Councilor Klarissa Peña, who is seeking her fourth term, received 41% of the vote in a tight three-way contest Nov. 4, sending her into a runoff with Teresa Garcia, who received 38% of the vote.

The runoff will determine who will represent City Council District 3, a heavily Hispanic district on Albuquerque’s Southwest Mesa.

The Nov. 4 election eliminated Christopher Sedillo, a retired U.S. Navy veteran, who received 21% of the vote.

Both candidates have made Peña’s accomplishments a focus of their campaigns. Pena, 58, cites a list of projects completed or in progress during her 12 years in office.

Teresa Garcia, 37, responds that residents on the Southwest Mesa lack retail and job opportunities and that the accomplishments Peña cites too often have provided little benefit for District 3 residents.

“She’s a 12-year incumbent, so she’s going to list all of her accomplishments,” Garcia said. “I would hope that there would be something for 12 years, right?”

Garcia describes herself as first-generation Mexican-American and the first in her family to attend college, earning a bachelor’s degree in biology and chemistry at the University of New Mexico. She worked for 10 years as a pharmacy technician for employers including Presbyterian Healthcare and Duke City Methadone.

Garcia also identifies as a survivor of domestic violence. In October she completed a three-year term as chair of the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Commission for the city of Albuquerque. Currently, she works remotely as a digital marketing and communications specialist for the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence.

Peña cites in her campaign materials a list of city-funded projects completed or started during her tenure and says she needs a fourth term to complete them. She also promotes her years-long advocacy for the Route 66 Visitors Center, which she described in a Journal questionnaire as a “unique catalyst for District 3’s economic growth.”

Garcia has strongly criticized Peña’s advocacy of the Route 66 Visitors Center. “For three years, a $13 million visitor center paid for with your tax dollars has sat completely vacant,” Garcia wrote in a social media post.

“It’s hard to say if there is anything happening out there, because the community isn’t aware,” Garcia said in a recent interview. “It’s not open. If I head up there right now, those gates are going to be locked.” The center also is located outside the city and too far out to serve as a resource for the community, she said.

The $13.1 million Route 66 Visitor Center, located west of Albuquerque at Atrisco Vista and Central, was built with state, city and county dollars. The building was incomplete at the time of the official ribbon cutting in September 2022.

Bernalillo County donated the building to the city in February 2024.

Peña also has served as a past executive director of the West Central Community Development Group, which was contracted to operate the Route 66 Visitor Center from June 2023 to February 2024. Peña’s husband was a past board member of the WCCDG.

Peña said in a recent interview that the center has hired staff and is gearing up for the 100-year anniversary of Route 66. The center also has partnered with Meow Wolf to create an augmented reality display there, she said.

The Route 66 Visitor Center is a long-term community project with discussions dating back to 1992, she said.

“This was something that has been met with challenges, successes, obstacles, roadblocks, but the community has continued to persist and make sure that the Southwest Mesa has something that it deserves,” Peña said in a recent interview. The visitor center also has led to development at 98th Street and Central SW, including warehouses on Central Avenue, she said.

Pena also cites the recently opened Southwest Public Safety Center at 98th and Amole Mesa SW, which she said includes the city’s first new fire station in 20 years and the first to combine facilities for Albuquerque Community Safety and community rooms.

Garcia said the center remains largely empty and unused.

“It’s like the visitor center — it’s built and then it’s not actually open,” she said.

Peña, who qualified for public campaign funding, has a financial edge over Garcia. Peña has received total contributions of $41,835, including $36,645 in city funding, according to her campaign filings. Her largest private contribution was $1,800 from Neustadt Properties LLC.

Garcia received a total of $13,399 in contributions. Her largest contribution was $1,814 from OLÉ New Mexico, a nonprofit that describes itself as an advocate for renters, immigrants and people of color.