“This Republican primary reminded voters that no dirty trick is beneath Santa Fe-insider Yvette Herrell. Southern New Mexicans deserve better than Herrell’s Washington-style brand of corrupt and divisive politics. Representative Xochitl Torres Small, on the other hand, has a deep connection to her community and has shown her commitment to tackling the challenges it faces. Whether she is advocating for better rural health care or a safer border, Xochitl is willing to work with anyone to get things done, and that record will earn her a second term in November.” – DCCC Chairwoman Cheri Bustos
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To: Interested Parties
From: Brooke Goren, DCCC Regional Press Secretary
Date: June 2, 2020
Subject: The Case Against Yvette Herrell
In 2018, political insider Yvette Herrell lost New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District to water attorney Xochitl Torres Small after running “what many saw as a mediocre campaign.” Now, following what has been called the “ugliest primary anywhere in the country,” Herrell heads into yet another general election as a deeply damaged nominee who will have to grapple with the lingering impact of hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of attacks from her own party before November.
What’s more, national Republicans seem to have little faith in Herrell’s ability to win the second time around. Earlier this month, NRCC Vice Chair Richard Hudson threw his support behind her opponent saying, “we’re counting on Claire Chase” and “we know that Claire’s the right person to put us in the right column” in November.
After a bitter, prolonged primary fight, Herrell faces an uphill battle in convincing voters to coalesce behind her. While Representative Xochitl Torres Small has been hard at work for rural communities hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, Herrell has spent the last several months engaged in personal attacks aimed at her fellow Republicans. In attack ads against Herrell, a PAC supporting her primary opponent spent nearly $200,000 saying Herrell is “another politician we can’t trust” and that she is “trying to lie her way into Congress.”
In contrast, Torres Small has built a strong record as an advocate for rural New Mexico. Over the last 17 months, Torres Small has proven that she is an independent-minded legislator who is serious about improving rural health care and tackling the tough challenges facing communities in her district along the southern border. The Albuquerque Journal Editorial Board praised her as “a voice of reason in a literal desert” for her willingness to work across the aisle in order to create a strong and vibrant border. Earlier this year, her bipartisan bill aimed at securing ports of entry along the border passed the House, earning her more praise from her community’s local Editorial Board.
Torres Small also has built the powerful grassroots momentum needed to win in a district with a long history of supporting Republicans. With over $3 million cash on hand, Torres Small has the resources necessary to articulate a real choice for voters: a champion for rural New Mexico versus a political insider saddled with a damaging history of ethics problems.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
HEADLINE: Editorial: Freshman NM lawmaker [Torres Small] a voice of reason in desert [Albuquerque Journal Editorial Board, 2/5/19]
HEADLINE: Torres Small not always in step with her party [Albuquerque Journal, 3/2/19]
HEADLINE: Torres Small seeks bipartisan border security solutions [Albuquerque Journal, 4/20/19]
HEADLINE: Xochitl Torres Small’s bill aims to reduce doctor shortage [Albuquerque Journal, 3/30/19]
HEADLINE: Records: New Mexico Lawmaker [Yvette Herrell] Didn’t Disclose State Contracts [Associated Press, 4/06/18]
“University of New Mexico political science professor Gabriel Sanchez said the nastiness of the GOP primary will leave the eventual winner so battered and bruised that Republicans will have a hard time going up against Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Xochitl Torres Small of Las Cruces in the general election.” [Associated Press, 5/05/20]
Yvette Herrell: A Political Insider Dogged By Scandal
HERRELL REPRESENTS THE WORST KIND OF CORRUPT POLITICS
As hardworking families struggle to survive a pandemic that has been especially damaging for rural New Mexico, voters will have no tolerance for Herrell’s Washington-style brand of corrupt politics.
In 2018, voters rejected Herrell after reports showed that she used her role as a state representative to benefit financially. According to the Associated Press, Herrell pocketed a half-a-million dollars in taxpayer-funded contracts and then violated ethics rules when she tried to hide these contacts from the public eye. The Albuquerque Journal Editorial Board called her failure to disclose the income as “pretty egregious” and her denial “disingenuous at best.”
Fast forward to today, and Herrell is still trying to run the same kind of dirty campaign that failed her last cycle. During the primary, Herrell ran ads peddling dangerous lies about last year’s election, claiming falsely that the election was “stolen” from her, despite absolutely no evidence. She faced criticism from nonpartisan analysts for running “one of the most sexist campaign ads in recent memory.” And one of Herrell’s opponents called for her to drop out of the race after Herrell promoted rumors about her fellow Republican’s marriage.
HERRELL WOULD BE A DISASTER FOR NEW MEXICANS’ HEALTH CARE
Health care is voters’ number one concern – and in southern New Mexico, access to quality, affordable services remains the top challenge. But Washington Republicans have repeatedly voted to raise health care costs, gut protections for 268,700 people in NM-02 with pre-existing conditions, leave millions of Americans without access to critical services, and raise prescription drug costs. Nevertheless, Herrell has said again and again that she stands with those attacks on our health care system and would vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act if elected to Congress. All that, in the midst of a pandemic that has raised the threat level on everyday New Mexicans’ health.
In contrast with Herrell’s disastrous agenda, Representative Torres Small has made rural health care one of her top priorities in Congress. She introduced legislation to decrease maternal mortality rates in rural areas and wrote a bill that would provide thousands of additional doctors for rural communities. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, Torres Small successfully secured much-needed funding for rural hospitals and helped rural communities access more non-contact medical services by pushing Medicare to cover tele-health visits.
PATH TO VICTORY
In 2018, Representative Torres Small made history in this massive, rural district by running a robust grassroots campaign focused on issues ranging from health care to education to jobs and the economy. Her refreshing brand as a water rights attorney with deep roots in the district resonated powerfully, turning out a record number of voters in Doña Ana County who were ready for new representation.
In addition to Torres Small’s 2018 win, history shows that Democrats can win in this southern New Mexico district. In 2008, both former Rep. Harry Teague and Senator Tom Udall won this district, and Senator Martin Heinrich carried it by over 5 points in his 2018 re-election bid.
Torres Small’s commanding fundraising shows she is taking nothing for granted against the opponent she defeated just two years ago.
But with a large Hispanic population that makes up over 43% of the citizen voting age population and Torres Small’s ability to generate Democratic enthusiasm, her path to re-election in 2020 is clear.
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