Teresa Garcia concedes City Council contest

Albuquerque closed the book on the 2025 election Thursday when City Council candidate Teresa Garcia conceded the race to incumbent Councilor Klarissa Peña, saying she trusts the reported results.

Garcia also said she wanted to spare her campaign the expense of a recount, which she estimated would have cost $300,000 to $500,000.

The District 3 City Council runoff contest on Tuesday was among the closest in memory, with unofficial returns showing Peña with a 68-vote advantage over Garcia of the 6,608 votes cast. Peña's margin of victory was just over 1% of the vote.

"District 3 made its voice heard loudly, clearly, courageously," Garcia said at a news conference Thursday at Alamosa Park near Coors and Bridge SW. "The system may not work for us yet, but we are not done fighting."

Peña's victory gives her a fourth term in the District 3 post she has held since 2013. District 3 lies in far Southwest Albuquerque, south of Central Avenue and west of the Rio Grande.

The outcome of the runoff election remained in doubt Wednesday when Peña claimed victory and Garcia declined to concede, citing the razor-thin margin that separated the candidates.

On Thursday, Garcia said she had "reviewed all the options" and concluded that the Bernalillo County Clerk's Office had provided accurate returns.

"I ran for City Council District 3 not because I had political machinery behind me, not because I had wealthy donors, and not because I was backed by entrenched power," Garcia said. "I ran because our community deserves the basic infrastructure, like sidewalks and better roads, actual jobs in the district and investment for our youth and our community."

Garcia also said that a recount would have cost her campaign $5,000 for each of the city's 50 polling places because District 3 voters can cast votes at any location.

Garcia raised a total of $32,477 in private funding for both the runoff and the regular election, including $18,579 during the runoff cycle, city records show.

Peña's campaign raised a total of $82,401 for both election cycles, including $36,645 in public financing from the city. During the runoff, Peña raised $40,566 in private funding.

Garcia conceded the race surrounded by supporters who included Alex Uballez, who finished third in last month's regular mayoral election with 19% of the votes cast in a six-way contest.

Mayor Tim Keller won a third term Tuesday, capturing 58% of the vote to defeat challenger Darren White.

Garcia also took a defiant tone about reports that surfaced during the runoff campaign showing that she was arrested in 2015, and later acquitted, on a domestic violence charge.

Garcia identifies as a victim of domestic violence and contends that her ex-husband used the criminal system against her by accusing her of a crime.

Garcia was charged with aggravated battery against a household member (no great bodily harm), a misdemeanor. A Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court jury found Garcia not guilty of the charge on Aug. 21, 2015.

"To every single survivor watching this, I want to say this," Garcia said, "your story should never be weaponized for political gain. Mine was, and I refuse to let that become normal."