Another Dem declares candidacy for lt. gov. nomination in crowded primary

In a political environment dominated by big-city progressives and career insiders, Jackie Lee Onsuarez is pitching himself as a rural, working-class alternative in the 2026 race for New Mexico lieutenant governor.

Onsuarez, 58, currently serves as a senior staff specialist at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), a vital federal facility tied to New Mexico’s energy economy. He’s also nearing the end of his first term as mayor pro tem on the Loving Village Council, where he represents about 1,200 constituents — many of whom feel forgotten by Santa Fe elites.

“I’m an advocate for the people,” Onsuarez said in an interview with Source NM. “I bring to the executive branch a set of diversified skills that nobody has there.”

Despite his alignment with the Democrat Party, Onsuarez strikes a populist tone that sharply contrasts with the far-left progressives who dominate the Capitol. He’s running, he says, because “embedded Democrats and Republicans” have turned a blind eye to rural communities and practical concerns like infrastructure, health care, and crime.

His resume includes international experience working in chemical plant construction across Saudi Arabia, India, China, and the U.K., as well as a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. He also served by gubernatorial appointment on the New Mexico Emergency Response Commission, adding emergency management credentials to his portfolio.

This makes him an unusual figure in a field dominated by left-wing politicians more interested in identity politics than the nuts and bolts of governance.

In fact, Onsuarez enters a crowded Democrat primary alongside two well-known far-left figures: current State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard, who is term-limited, and State Sen. Harold Pope, a progressive from Albuquerque. Both are deeply entrenched in the Santa Fe political machine, and both have built careers by pushing policies that often alienate rural New Mexicans — particularly those tied to the oil and gas industry.

Onsuarez, by contrast, embraces his Southeast New Mexico roots. “I’m the Democrat that lives in New Mexic, where at least 35% of the revenues are generated for New Mexico’s general fund,” he said. “We rural New Mexicans need a seat at that table.”

That table, of course, is currently dominated by urban leftists pushing climate mandates and anti-industry policies — many of which threaten the economic livelihood of the very regions Onsuarez represents.

While he has not yet raised or spent campaign funds, Onsuarez says his experience in small-town government has equipped him to preside over the state Senate, where the lieutenant governor plays a key procedural role.

“I’ve written laws that I tried to introduce, but they didn’t get very far,” he said. “I’ve written a lot of ordinances, and I’ve worked closely with our legal department. I certainly have the expertise to be able to learn something — and with respect to presiding over the Senate, I have the skill set to do it.”

Onsuarez isn’t endorsing any gubernatorial candidate yet, distancing himself from the three leftist names in the Democrat race: Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, Bernalillo County DA Sam Bregman, and ex-Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagashima.

Meanwhile, the Republican field is also taking shape, with Rio Rancho Mayor Gregg Hull leading the GOP ticket for governor. Manuel Lardizabal is the only declared Republican running for lieutenant governor so far, though more conservatives are expected to enter the race.

Whether Onsuarez can survive a Democrat primary increasingly dominated by radical urban progressives remains to be seen — but his campaign may highlight growing fractures within the party between rural pragmatists and Santa Fe ideologues.