Mayor Keller wins third consecutive term in Albuquerque runoff election

Incumbent Tim Keller scored a historic third consecutive term in Albuquerque’s mayoral runoff election Tuesday, after a bruising contest fought over homelessness, crime and federal immigration enforcement.

Keller, 48, captured nearly 58% of the vote, compared to 42% for challenger Darren White, according to unofficial election results as of 9 p.m. Tuesday.

“Voters granted us something very, very special,” Keller said to a raucous crowd of supporters at The Clyde Hotel in Downtown Albuquerque. “It’s a mandate to push forward and it’s also a challenge to rise to the occasion. That is what our next four years is going to be all about.”

White conceded the mayoral race around 7:45 p.m. to a crowd of roughly 60 people gathered at the Courtyard by Marriott. The 62-year-old told supporters he had called Keller to congratulate him.

White said as a Republican he was fighting an uphill battle — as New Mexico remains a Democratic-leaning state — and lacked the public financing to win. He urged fellow Republicans to continue to speak their minds and fight for their beliefs, and encouraged supporters to back City Council candidates who share the same mindset.

“Don’t you think for a minute that your voice can’t be heard,” White said.

He added, “Maybe, just maybe, what we went through in those debates and all those forums, maybe the mayor will understand that we want him to fight for our families and we want him to fight for our businesses.”

Keller, whose campaign was publicly financed, collected more than $1.14 million in contributions for both the regular local and runoff elections, compared to White’s reported total of $642,429 in private contributions. White didn’t qualify for the public financing.

The two men entered the runoff election after neither candidate received 50% of the vote in the city’s Nov. 4 regular local election amidst a crowded field of six candidates.

Keller fended off weeks of White attack ads and, more recently, an anonymous campaign to induce homeless individuals living along Central Avenue to don bright yellow “I  Tim Keller” sweatshirts. The tactic — which White said he had nothing to do with — led to Keller’s campaign filing an ethics complaint with the city.

An Albuquerque native first elected mayor in 2017, Keller campaigned on his eight-year record of fighting crime and expanding housing for the 5,000 or more unhoused people in the city. That included opening a multifaceted Gateway system of care and creating a city community safety department to respond to behavioral health and crisis situations in the city.

Keller touted a decrease in both violent and property crime in 2025 over the prior year and promised to continue efforts to equip the Albuquerque Police Department with advanced technology and civilian support to back up the 950 or so sworn officers.

The campaign marked White’s return to the political arena after a 14-year absence. He said he entered the race after lamenting about the “state” of the city, and finding no other Republican was running. White promised he would only serve for four years.

Photos: Mayor Tim Keller secures a third straight term as Albuquerque's mayor

A former New Mexico public safety director, Bernalillo County sheriff, and city public safety officer, White campaigned on his law enforcement background, promising a change of direction, emphasizing aggressive encampment sweeps of homeless individuals, and full cooperation with federal immigration agents seeking access to data on suspects arrested by APD.

Keller called that approach to addressing homelessness “dangerous” and “ineffective.” And last summer, he issued an executive order reaffirming that city resources may not be used to assist in federal civil immigration enforcement, except where legally required.

Keller has said he will continue to add affordable housing units in the city, and work on a new 7-mile urban Rail Trail among his administration’s transportation priorities. The trail will link the Downtown area to Old Town and the Sawmill District.

Keller, in an energetic speech, told a room filled with supporters that he will continue to defend Albuquerque from both President Donald Trump and any other adversaries.

“Tonight, we stood up for Albuquerque,” Keller said. “Our families are the most important things in our lives and we will defend our families.”