New Mexico’s three Republican gubernatorial candidates squared off Wednesday night in a televised, 30-minute KOAT debate, offering voters a clearer picture of where the GOP primary contenders stand on taxes, education, crime, immigration, and the future of the state fairgrounds as the June 2 primary approaches.
The debate featured Rio Rancho Mayor Gregg Hull, businessman and former Human Services Secretary Duke Rodriguez, and businessman Doug Turner.
While the candidates largely agreed on broad conservative themes such as cutting taxes, supporting ICE detention contracts, and criticizing Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s outgoing administration, the debate also revealed notable differences on policy specifics and governing style.
All three candidates pointed to New Mexico’s crime and education crises as top priorities, though each emphasized different root causes and solutions.
Rodriguez argued crime is the state’s single biggest issue, saying it touches nearly every other policy area.
“When we deal with crime, we talk about fixing poverty, fixing a failing education system, dealing with mental health, addiction,” Rodriguez said. “All those issues collide.”
Hull, meanwhile, said education is the foundational issue.
“If we’re not educating our kids, we are failing them,” Hull said, arguing better schools would strengthen the workforce and reduce long-term crime.
Turner focused heavily on educational outcomes and CYFD failures, noting that nearly half of New Mexico’s third graders cannot read at grade level.
“We have been failing our children in this state for 30 years, and that has to end now,” Turner said.
All three Republicans blasted the recently enacted law banning local governments from contracting with ICE detention facilities.
Turner argued the law harms rural economies and makes little practical sense.
“ICE is going to use facilities somewhere,” Turner said. “They might as well go to our state and promote economic growth in those communities.”
Rodriguez said the law unfairly assumes New Mexico counties cannot run detention facilities humanely.
Hull said shutting down such contracts “sends a message that we’re not willing to hold people accountable.”
Perhaps the strongest consensus of the night came on tax reform, with all three candidates calling for major reductions.
Rodriguez took the most aggressive stance, promising sweeping tax elimination.
“I said eliminate state personal income tax,” Rodriguez declared. “Eliminate New Mexico gross receipts tax on all retail sales.”
Hull similarly endorsed eliminating the state income tax while calling for broader reform of gross receipts and property taxes.
Turner proposed reducing the personal income tax to 3% over time while also pursuing long-term gross receipts tax reform.
The debate’s clearest divide emerged over the future of Expo New Mexico and the state fairgrounds.
Hull strongly backed keeping the fairgrounds in its current Albuquerque location.
“The state fair needs to stay right where it’s at,” Hull said, calling it part of the city’s and state’s identity.
Turner broke with Hull, arguing the site should be redeveloped for more productive uses and the fair moved elsewhere.
“We’re 32,000 housing units short in this state,” Turner said, suggesting the land could be used for housing, a stadium, or other redevelopment.
Rodriguez took a middle-ground approach, saying the decision should be left to the next administration after stakeholder input.
The candidates also offered varying critiques of the state’s universal child care program.
Rodriguez, who recently sued the Lujan Grisham administration over the initiative, reiterated that he supports child care assistance but argued the current rollout is unlawful and unsustainable.
“It has to be a program that is lawful, legal, and sustainable,” Rodriguez said.
Turner said he supports the concept but wants means testing added.
“An extremely wealthy person shouldn’t have the state paying for their child care,” Turner said.
Hull questioned whether the state has the infrastructure and budget capacity to sustain the program long-term.
With early voting beginning May 5, the debate gave Republican voters one of their final major opportunities to compare the three candidates side by side.
Though all three candidates offered similar criticism of Democratic governance, Wednesday’s debate showed meaningful differences in tone, priorities, and policy specifics that could shape the outcome of the increasingly competitive GOP primary.
The winner will advance to face the Democratic nominee in November, along with independent candidate former Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima.
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