The New Mexico Democrat Party’s promises of unity have unraveled in spectacular fashion. Just a month after being elected party treasurer, Julie Rochman has resigned in a dramatic episode that lays bare the infighting and dysfunction roiling the state’s left-wing leadership, according to a report from the Santa Fe New Mexican.
Rochman, who won her post with 60% of the vote, said her troubles began the moment she extended a hand to newly elected Chair Sara Attleson. “She sort of really didn’t take it,” Rochman recounted. “I stepped in closer so no one could hear me, and I said, ‘You know, Sara, you have to talk to me. We’re going to be working together,’ and she turned on her heel and walked away.”
The April 26 encounter foreshadowed a toxic dynamic that would escalate over the next few weeks. According to Rochman, she was ignored, excluded from meetings, and ultimately pushed out by a leadership clique that campaigned on “unity” but delivered exclusion.
“I was being ignored by the chair and vice chair,” Rochman said. “I didn’t even know weekly staff meetings were taking place.” After enduring what she described as sleepless nights, she decided to resign. “I’m the problem, and I need to go,” she said, despite her lifelong ambition of being an elected Democrat.
The resignation exposes deep fractures in a party that claims to be preparing for high-stakes 2026 midterms, which includes New Mexico’s governorship vacant amid a disastrous tenure of far-left Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.
Instead of organizing and building coalitions, the party brass is more focused on silencing dissent and consolidating power. Rochman said she was handed a nondisclosure agreement containing an unprecedented nondisparagement clause — a “lifetime gag order,” she called it. She claimed, “That’s very Trumpian, and I will not be a party to that kind of thing,” she said — apparently unaware of the irony in using the comparison to criticize a tactic that came from her own party.
To add fuel to the fire, Rochman questioned the party’s supposed commitment to diversity. While the leadership includes an African American vice chair and a Navajo secretary, Rochman bluntly noted that the team lacks representation from New Mexico’s majority-Hispanic population — a glaring oversight for a party that lectures others on inclusion.
“I think it would be good for the party if [my replacement] happened to be Hispanic and spoke Spanish and came from a rural area,” she said.
Party spokesperson Daniel Garcia attempted to downplay the chaos, claiming that “team building” was simply a matter of taking time. But the damage is done. A public power struggle has broken out, and the party’s top officials are off at a conference while their ranks crumble back home.
Despite it all, Rochman says she’ll remain involved in Democrat politics. But her departure is an unmistakable warning sign: the New Mexico Democrat Party is not the unified, progressive machine it pretends to be. If this is how the party operates heading into an election year, Republicans may be wise to grab some popcorn. The Democrats are beating themselves.
I love it when the Dems eat their own
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dont kid yourself. no matter what the dem party does in NM it will continue to win elections. the voters are the problem in NM. they are majority clueless.
I believe there are more problems coming for the party. New Mexicans are waking up to the corruption. That’s why so many of them voted Red in the last election.
👍👏👏👏👏👏
Unfortunately, I believe you are correct. The majority of Hispanic and Native American voters will remain loyal to the Democrat party regardless of the conflicts. The Socialist handouts to buy their votes will continue.
You’re 💯 right. And if people don’t think this same crap doesn’t happen in the Republican party, they’re sadly mistaken. Reason elections aren’t won more by NM Republicans is because of the chaos and lack of leadership of the Bernalillo County Republicans. Theyre key and they do little to nothing of what it takes to win. Don’t listen to their words, watch their actions!!
I so agree with you. They just don’t get it and no matter what they still keep voting for the corrupt Democraps!
Rochman is out of her mind, not because of her issues with other democrats but because of her equity push. NM is in the United States. We should all be speaking English. We all know when people that speak a different language do not know what you are saying they speak a different language. This even happened in Chaparral where our elected official told the Spanish speakers one thing and the non Spanish speakers another. But what he failed to realize Spanish speakers distrust the government as much as non speakers and our community as a whole do not care about equity they car about making our community better and we stand up for each other. Now back to my point, the best qualified person should take her place and the dems that ignored her should ignore the new person as well. I would rather have the state gov implode sooner than later as the dems could not lead anyone out of a wet paper bag, they are that ignorant and that power hungry. They are not for the people, not for the state, they are for control of the population.
I think it’s time the Republicans actually start organizing and building coalitions for the mid-term elections. Let’s take advantage of this time as the democrats crumble.
Contact RPNM and your local county Republican Party.
It is easy to get involved and hard to find the people that really volunteer.
Exactly. Sign up and volunteer.
the repubs are silent. they dont run ads or have any marketing as the governor and legislature fail. they are their own worst enemies. if you cant beat the losers that run this state, then shame on you. and repub voters – why dont you show up to vote ? are you lazy or stupid ?
The Pinon Post is an exception , they DO speak out and spread information. but the Pinon Post is not the party. where are you party ?
Yes. Exactly right.
Are you involved in the county or state party? There are trainings through RPNM every month, and your local county party are already fundraising for elections, voter registration, etc. I see the Republican Party in my area having a yard sale for $$$ and zoom trainings. They are having a big training in Las Cruces. Quit complaining and get your info straight. There is a small group of people doing everything and we need an army.
If they haven’t already started they are behind the power curve.
Who is they….you should be they. “Say, we are doing
it and I am helping the Republican Party today”. Don’t
expect others to do what you won’t do, and complain
about how they do it.
Big egos, no brain cells. Same goes for the voters who vote for them.
Looking at this post as well as r’s sites in Bernco and SoNM you will hear all the time about what the d’s are doing wrong. Question is what are r’s doing? Disparaging the d’s isn’t the answer. Anyone reading this post or r sites already know why they are there. r’s need to tell them what they are doing to change and help fix things. respectfully
Yes, voters deserve much of the blame as they’ve been voting the same year after year after year, but we also need some Reps to run for office, where we would actually have a CHOICE, a better option. Voting the same people into office and expecting a different outcome, is moronic. NM you can do better.
It is not the party themselves; they both are not worthy of any vote, in my opinion. It is the People working in the state and local governments allowing this to take place. Their hearts are not with God, or with anything divine. They are looking for a pension and to do so, sell their soul to the luciferian agenda – knowingly or not. It has been done. And the largest employer in NM is local, city and state govt. Things cannot change with an over bloated government as we have here. The state is the Peoples GOD in NM. Sad but true.
I concur. Good post.