U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury is doubling down on her gerrymandering fundraising pitch, again accusing Republicans of trying to “deny representation” while ignoring the political reality right here in New Mexico: Democrats used total control of Santa Fe to redraw the state’s congressional map and help wipe out Republican representation in the U.S. House delegation.
In a new campaign email with the subject line “A lack of representation,” Stansbury claimed, “Republican gerrymandering is an attempt to deny representation for Americans.”
She then tied the claim to her work with Elect Democratic Women, writing, “That’s why I’m a member of the Elect Democratic Women Caucus. We’re going to step up for women when their seats are at risk of being gerrymandered away.”
The email asked supporters to “rush $10 right now” to help Stansbury support Democratic women, saying her campaign needed to raise $1,320 by midnight to stay on track ahead of an FEC filing deadline.
“I’m fighting every day to help Democratic women take back the House — only 28% of Congresspeople are women, which isn’t enough,” Stansbury wrote. “Let’s show our strength at this filing deadline. Democratic women have to win, which is why I’m supporting them across the nation this cycle.”
The latest email follows a previous Stansbury fundraising pitch that warned donors about “gerrymandering” and asked for money to “make sure Republicans stay OUT of Congress.”
Now, rather than backing away from the hypocrisy, Stansbury appears to be leaning into it.
The problem for Stansbury is simple: New Mexico voters already watched Democrats do exactly what she claims to oppose.
After the 2020 Census, New Mexico’s congressional map was drawn by the state’s Democrat-controlled Legislature and signed by Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The new map dramatically reshaped the state’s congressional districts, especially the southern Second Congressional District, which had long been the most Republican-leaning seat in the state.
Democrats cracked conservative communities and stretched the district into more Democrat-friendly areas, giving their party a much stronger shot at winning all three congressional seats.
That is exactly what happened.
Republican Yvette Herrell lost the Second Congressional District in 2022 to Democrat Gabe Vasquez, and Democrats now hold all three of New Mexico’s U.S. House seats.
So when Stansbury claims that “Republican gerrymandering” is an attempt to “deny representation,” conservative New Mexicans may reasonably ask: what does she call what Democrats did in New Mexico?
Because for Republicans in this state, the result was clear. Their congressional representation was effectively erased.
Stansbury’s email tries to repackage the issue as a women’s representation fight, arguing that Democratic women need protection from Republican maps. But that framing conveniently leaves out a major fact: partisan map-rigging is not morally better when Democrats do it, and it is not less political when the beneficiaries are left-wing candidates.
The email also shows how national Democratic fundraising language is being filtered through New Mexico politicians. The formula is familiar: accuse Republicans of attacking democracy, claim representation is at risk, demand immediate small-dollar donations, and never mention what Democrats have done when they control the map-drawing process.
Stansbury’s latest message says she is fighting to help Democratic women “take back the House.” But in New Mexico, Democrats already used redistricting to help take every House seat.
That is why this pitch is so shameless.
Stansbury is not some outside observer watching redistricting fights from afar. She is a New Mexico Democrat whose party benefited from one of the most aggressive congressional redistricting plays in state history. Her own state’s map was redesigned to weaken Republican voters, particularly in southern New Mexico, and help Democrats achieve a 3-0 congressional delegation.
Now she is asking donors to believe Republicans are the only ones using district lines for political power.
The hypocrisy is hard to miss.
Stansbury’s email says “Republican gerrymandering” denies representation. New Mexico Republicans might say Democrat gerrymandering already did.
And instead of acknowledging that reality, Stansbury is fundraising off it.