Herrell leads Democrat in New Mexico House race: poll

Rep. Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) holds a double-digit lead over Democratic challenger Gabriel Vasquez in New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District race, according to a new poll.

An Emerson College Polling-The Hill survey released Monday found Herrell with 54 percent support among very likely voters, compared to Vasquez, a former aide to Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and former Las Cruces City councilman, with 41 percent. A separate 4 percent were undecided.

When the poll factored in undecided voters who were asked which candidate they were leaning toward at that time, Vasquez’s support rose to 44 percent, while Herrell’s 54 percent support held. 

Likely aiding Herrell’s chances for a second term in the House is the fact that the economy was rated by respondents as the most important issue in determining their vote (36 percent), followed by abortion access at 14 percent, threats to democracy at 13 percent and crime at 11 percent.

Herrell won her first election in 2020 by 7 points against then-Rep. Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.); the race is rated by the nonpartisan election handicapper Cook Political Report as a toss-up.

The Emerson College Polling-The Hill survey surveyed 302 very likely voters in the state’s 2nd Congressional District between Oct. 25 and Oct. 28. The margin of error is plus or minus 5.6 percentage points.