Haaland leads in gubernatorial poll
In the first public poll for this fall's gubernatorial race, former Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland has a commanding 17-point lead over former Rio Rancho mayor Greg Hull.
New Mexico Political Report reports that neither candidate has the support of a majority of the electorate- the poll shows Haaland, a Democrat, with 41 percent of the vote and Republican Hull with 24 percent. More than a quarter of poll respondents remain undecided.
Independent voters are a growing segment of the New Mexico electorate and the poll found that almost half of the independents surveyed remain undecided.
Haaland performed better in urban areas while Hull maintains a lead in the state's rural counties. Hull is also leading with voters over the age of 51 and people who earn more than $80,000 a year.
The poll was conducted by BSP Research and University of New Mexico political science professor Gabriel Sanchez.
NMED officer recuses self from Project Jupiter permitting
A New Mexico Environment Department officer has recused himself from the Project Jupiter data center air quality permit proceedings.
Attorneys from two environmental advocacy groups sought last week to disqualify the officer, Max Shepherd, claiming that he had failed to conduct a fair and impartial proceeding.
Their complaint followed Shepherd's rescheduling of the air quality permit hearing. The hearing was originally scheduled for October, but Shepherd moved the date to September following a request from Project Jupiter developers.
The New Mexico Supreme Court issued a stay Sunday night that temporarily delays the hearing. Opponents of Project Jupiter worry that the hearing date is too soon given the complexity of Project Jupiter.
Shepherd told Source New Mexico he recused himself because he feared a ruling in favor of Project Jupiter would result in claims of bias.
NM Supreme Court session to begin
The New Mexico Supreme Court will open its 2026-2027 term next week in Santa Fe and will hear oral arguments in September, October and December.
Among the first three cases the court will hear beginning September 4 is a potential precedent setting appeal of a medical malpractice case. The case revolves around the Superintendent of Insurance's refusal to pay a settlement from a state fund and whether the Medical Malpractice Act allows for lump sum payments of settlements.
The court will also hear a case that seeks to block PNM implementing smart meters for electric customers. The devices would wirelessly transmit energy use data to the utility, eliminating the need for workers to manually read meters.
The court is set to consider 45 cases this session and will issue decisions in July of 2027.
Drought worsens in lackluster monsoon season
A new outlook from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports that monsoon rains have not lived up to the hype of earlier predictions.
The outlook shows that 95 percent of New Mexico is experiencing some degree of drought. It also reported that major reservoirs in the Colorado River and Rio Grande basins such as Lake Mead and Lake Powell have reached historic lows.
Elephant Butte Reservoir in Southern New Mexico is currently at one and a half percent of its capacity.
Despite the lackluster monsoon thus far, NOAA forecasters remain optimistic. They call for a 90 percent chance of very strong precipitation this fall and winter thanks to a strengthening El Niño. But even if that prediction comes to fruition, it will not be enough to eliminate drought conditions.
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