Republican Andrea Reeb is headed back to the New Mexico House in January after voters reelected the veteran prosecutor just weeks after a federal court ruling prompted her to resign her legislative seat to protect criminal cases she was prosecuting.
Reeb announced Thursday that she will serve the new term to which House District 64 voters elected her Tuesday, saying an outpouring of encouragement from constituents, community leaders and fellow lawmakers convinced her to return.
“I have been humbled by how many people called, wrote, and stopped me in town to ask me to come back,” Reeb said. “The voters re-elected me knowing exactly what had happened. They made their wishes clear, and I couldn’t ignore that.”
“The people of District 64 asked me to serve, and I’m going to,” she added. “I’m ready to get back to work for them.”
Reeb was unopposed on Tuesday’s ballot and received 7,112 votes, according to unofficial New Mexico election results, with all 32 precincts reporting in the district spanning portions of Chaves, Curry and Roosevelt counties.
Her return closes an unusual chapter that began with an Oct. 14 federal court decision concerning Reeb’s dual service as a state legislator and special prosecutor.
Reeb resigned rather than put prosecutions at risk
U.S. District Judge Kea Riggs ruled in Baldwin v. Morrissey that Reeb’s simultaneous service as a legislator and special prosecutor violated the separation-of-powers provision of the New Mexico Constitution.
The case stems from actor Alec Baldwin’s civil lawsuit against prosecutors and others involved in the criminal case following the fatal 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film Rust. Riggs’ Oct. 14 decision granted significant portions of motions to dismiss based on prosecutorial immunity while allowing other claims to continue.
One day after the ruling, Reeb resigned from the House.
Reeb said Thursday that the decision was made quickly because remaining in the Legislature while continuing her prosecutor work could have created legal challenges involving numerous pending criminal cases.
“I had to act quickly,” Reeb said. “Staying in the Legislature at that point could have jeopardized dozens of criminal cases, and the victims in those cases deserved better than that.”
At the time, Reeb said she disagreed with the court but would respect its ruling rather than risk allowing a constitutional fight involving her own position to interfere with cases involving crime victims.
“There are victims and families across this state who have trusted me with their cases, and many of them have already waited too long for justice,” Reeb said when she stepped down. “I made a commitment to stand with them in the courtroom, and I owe it to them to keep that commitment.”
Reeb has extensive prosecutorial experience and previously served as the elected district attorney for the 9th Judicial District. More recently, she has worked as a special prosecutor for district attorney offices around New Mexico.
In one recent case, Reeb prosecuted Andrew Whittenberg in San Juan County, securing convictions on two counts of first-degree murder along with aggravated burglary, firearm and evidence-tampering charges. The case included testimony from 33 witnesses and hundreds of exhibits.
Reeb had relied on attorney general’s opinion saying arrangement was legal
An important part of the controversy is that Reeb did not simply assume the dual arrangement was permissible.
Before continuing the work, she sought legal guidance.
In February 2024, Democratic Attorney General Raúl Torrez’s office issued Opinion No. 2024-04 specifically in response to a question from Reeb asking whether a legislator could simultaneously serve as a special assistant district attorney without violating the New Mexico Constitution’s separation-of-powers provision.
The Attorney General’s answer was unequivocal: “Yes.”
The opinion acknowledged that the question had not previously been resolved by New Mexico appellate courts but concluded that a legislator serving as a special prosecutor in the circumstances examined by the office did not violate the state Constitution.
Reeb also cited guidance from the State Ethics Commission.
Riggs ultimately reached a different constitutional conclusion in the Baldwin civil litigation, finding that Reeb had simultaneously exercised authority belonging to two branches of state government. The federal judge nevertheless found that Reeb had at least a “colorable claim of authority” to act as a prosecutor — an important distinction given the formal state guidance on which she had relied.
The court also dismissed many of Baldwin’s claims against Reeb and other prosecutors under absolute prosecutorial immunity.
Rather than prolong the uncertainty while criminal cases remained pending, Reeb resigned.
Within days, however, she made clear that the resignation did not necessarily mean she would abandon public service permanently.
“I’m reviewing my options based on a lot of feedback I’ve received,” Reeb told the Eastern New Mexico News shortly after leaving office, adding that she was considering whether to return for the new term beginning in January.
Tuesday’s election provided that opportunity.
New job eliminates the conflict before session begins
Reeb said she will continue her special-prosecutor work through the end of 2026 while transitioning her pending cases to other attorneys.
Then, in January, she plans to join Payne, Powell, Truitt and Chandler as a partner in private practice.
That change removes the dual-office issue identified by the federal court before the Legislature convenes for its 60-day session.
Reeb therefore will not simultaneously be serving as a special prosecutor and legislator when she returns to the Roundhouse, according to her announcement. Independent reporting Thursday likewise confirmed that she intends to phase out the contract prosecutor work before January.
Her resignation remains effective for the balance of her current term. Her announcement concerns the new term voters elected her to Tuesday.
Return comes as House GOP faces smaller numbers
Reeb’s decision also gives House Republicans an experienced attorney at a time when the caucus will enter the next Legislature with reduced numbers.
Democrats gained four Republican-held seats Tuesday and are expected to begin the coming session with a 47-23 House majority, giving them a two-thirds supermajority if the results hold.
Reeb is one of relatively few Republican attorneys in the chamber, alongside lawmakers including Rep. Cathrynn Brown of Carlsbad.
She was first elected in 2022 and has also served on the House’s bipartisan committee examining Jeffrey Epstein’s connections to New Mexico.
Her return could therefore carry significance beyond House District 64 as Republicans prepare for a session in which Democrats will wield overwhelming numerical control.
For Reeb, however, Thursday’s announcement centered on a simpler argument: she stepped aside when a court decision created an immediate risk to the prosecutions entrusted to her, spent the intervening weeks arranging a way to eliminate that conflict, and then listened when constituents asked her to return.
“The voters re-elected me knowing exactly what had happened,” Reeb said.
Now, rather than forcing a choice between the courtroom and the Roundhouse, Reeb says she has arranged her professional life so she can return to Santa Fe in January — this time without the conflict that prompted her resignation in the first place.