Some outgoing legislators step down early, possibly giving their successors a head start

Nov. 19—SANTA FE — Some New Mexico legislative candidates who won election this month could get a head start at the Roundhouse.

That's because five Senate Republicans have stepped down this fall before the end of their terms, paving the way for successors possibly to be appointed before January.

That could give them a slight advantage in seniority, which is among the criteria used to decide legislative committee assignments, as most winners in this month's general election won't formally take their seats until January.

Former Sens. Mark Moores of Albuquerque and Steven Neville of Aztec resigned at the end of September, according to the Legislative Council Service. They were followed by Ron Griggs of Alamogordo, Cliff Pirtle of Roswell and Greg Baca of Los Lunas, who all stepped down in the days before Election Day, Nov. 5.

Moores told the Journal at the time he made the decision to step down so that the winner of the race for the Senate District 21 seat he had held since 2013 could be appointed early. Republican Nicole Tobiassen defeated Democrat Athena Christodoulou for the seat, which encompasses a swath of Albuquerque's Northeast Heights.

However, none of the five current Senate vacancies had been filled by county commissions in the respective districts as of Tuesday, Legislative Council Service Director Shawna Casebier told the Journal.

Tobiassen said she has not been contacted regarding the Senate vacancy, though she said she's already hard at work preparing for the upcoming 60-day legislative session. And Bernalillo County spokesperson Tia Bland said the county had not received a resignation letter from Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver's office, which would initiate a county process to appoint a replacement.

It's not unprecedented for outgoing legislators to step down before the end of their elected terms, but the number of resignations this year appears to be higher than normal.

In all, there will be 28 new legislators at the Roundhouse come January, due to a mix of election defeats and incumbents not seeking reelection.

The number of new lawmakers will be especially high in the Senate, as 15 of the chamber's 42 members will be first-time senators once the legislative session gets underway.

But four of those new senators will be shifting over from the House. Those four senators-elect are Democrat Natalie Figueroa of Albuquerque and Republicans James Townsend of Artesia, Candy Spence Ezzell of Roswell and Larry Scott of Hobbs.

The 60-day legislative session begins Jan. 21.