Bernalillo County Commission narrows county manager finalists to three

Bernalillo County commissioners have selected three finalists in the search for a new county manager.

The commission has scheduled a public meeting for June 18, when the three candidates can “share their vision for Bernalillo County,” said Commission Chair Barbara Baca in a statement. The candidates can make their case to the public during the forum about why each is the best fit. Two of the candidates are out of state and might attend the forum virtually. The meeting will take place at 5 p.m. in the Commission Chambers at Alvarado Square, 415 Silver SW.

The candidates were approved on Tuesday with four votes in favor. Commissioner Walt Benson was not at the commission meeting.

The three candidates

• Cindy Chavez, who serves as a county supervisor in California and the board chair for the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority. She has served in various public service roles, including on a labor council, an elected official on municipal governing bodies and transportation boards, since 1994. She holds a bachelor’s in political science from San Jose University.
• Bernalillo County’s current Executive Development Officer, Marcos Gonzales, who has worked on economic development for the county in various roles since 2012. Gonzales has a master’s and a bachelor’s degree in business administration. In 2021, he was recognized for public service leadership by the Albuquerque Economic Development 505 Awards.
• Joseph Lessard, who has worked as city manager for Ashland, Oregon; assistant city manager in Austin, Texas; and assistant to the city manager in Dallas. Lessard also spent almost eight years as an independent consultant on organizational and strategic project management. He has a master’s in public affairs, a bachelor’s in business administration and a bachelor’s in political science.

County Manager Julie Morgas Baca is retiring at the end of the month. The commission is expected to pick a new county manager before then , according to a news release.

“What was surprising to me was that we had consensus on these three,” Commissioner Eric Olivas said.

The county manager is Bernalillo County’s top administrator in charge of day-to-day county business, and the process for hiring a new one has been divisive, with accusations of an Open Meetings Act violation related to selecting members of a hiring search committee.

The résumés of the candidates are available online at bernco.gov/home/county-manager-search.