United States Senate election in New Mexico, 2008

The 2008 New Mexico Senate Election was held on November 4, 2008 with Tom Udall the winner. The election was considered an open contest due to incumbent Republican Senator Pete Domenici's retirement. All three of New Mexico's U.S. Representatives (Democrat Tom Udall and Republicans Steve Pearce and Heather Wilson) chose to retire from the U.S. House of Representatives in order to run for the seat. On June 3, 2008, Udall won the Democratic primary and Pearce won the Republican primary.Election.KOB.com - Pearce narrowly wins U.S. Senate nomination Udall ended up winning with 61.2 percent of the vote.CNN.com

General election

Candidates

• Tom Udall (D), U.S. Congressman from {{ushr|New Mexico|3}} 1999-present (campaign website)
• Steve Pearce, U.S. Congressman from {{ushr|New Mexico|2}} 2003-present (campaign website)

Predictions

In February 2008 CQ Politics changed the rating of the election from 'No Clear Favorite' to 'Leans Democratic' citing polls.{{cite news | url=http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?parm1=5&docID=news-000002668829 | title=Democratic Udall Running Strong in New Mexico Senate Race | publisher=CQ Politics |date=February 11, 2008 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2008-12-18}}Race Ratings Chart: Senate CQ Politics In June, Senator John Ensign of Nevada, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, considered New Mexico to be one of the top ten most competitive Senate races.Kate Phillips, G.O.P. Leader Maps Senate Elections The New York Times, June 13, 2008 At the end of August, The Cook Political Report rated the race as 'Lean Democratic'.2008 Senate Race Chart The Cook Race Ratings, August 21, 2008 At the end of September, The Rothenberg Political Report rated the race 'Likely Takeover'.2008 Senate Ratings The Rothenberg Political Report, September 14, 2008

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Controversy

Domenici and Wilson are both being investigated by the Senate for their roles in the dismissal of prosecutor David Iglesias. This may have affected Wilson's chances in the 2008 election.{{cite news | url=http://thegate.nationaljournal.com/2007/10/wilson_to_seek_domenicis_senat_1.php | title=Wilson, Possibly Udall To Seek Domenici's Senate Seat | publisher=The Gate |date=October 4, 2008 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-10-18}}

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In late October Pearce made 130,000 automated phone calls, which led Wilson to "cry foul."{{cite news | url=http://kob.com/article/stories/S232572.shtml?cat=504 | title=Pearce calls voters, Wilson cries foul | publisher=KOB |date=2007-10-22 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-11-18}} At issue was Pearce's use of the phone calls to justify his opposition to the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) bill. The Wilson campaign claimed that "Pearce violated House ethics by urging those he called to contact him through his official, non-campaign phone number or check out his official, non-campaign Web site."{{cite news | url=http://www.alamogordonews.com/opinion/ci_7325103 | title=Senate hopefuls don't inspire | publisher=Alamogordo Daily News |date=October 31, 2007 | first= | last= | accessdate = 2007-11-18}}

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Finances

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) attempted to defend 23 Senate seats up for election in November. Committee chair Senator John Ensign identified the 10 most competitive Republican seats in June 2008. He was asked about the two Republican seats most likely to turn Democratic, Virginia and New Mexico. Ensign did not directly say whether the NRSC was considering walking away to work on other seats that can be won, but he said, "You don’t waste money on races that don’t need it or you can’t win.�{{cite news

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Debates

The candidates have agreed to three televised debates: October 15 on KOB-TV, October 18 on KRQE and October 26 on KOAT-TV. The AARP will co-sponsor the second debate and the Albuquerque Journal will co-sponsor the final debate. They will also appear together on Meet the Press in the fall.Senate candidates agree on 3 NM televised debates AP, August 17, 2008

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Polling

Pearce (R) v Udall (D)

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Results