Byrd captures GOP nod for county assessor

Jefferson Byrd defeated James Kleinsasser for the Republican nomination for Quay County assessor during light turnout last Tuesday in the primary election.

Byrd, 52, a rancher and windmiller from rural Tucumcari, earned a total of 466 votes in the county - 128 more than Kleinsasser, 63, a chief deputy assessor who lives in Tucumcari. That represented 58% of the vote for Byrd.

Byrd won all precincts in the county. He faces current officeholder and Democratic nominee Dana Leonard in November's general election.

Leonard, appointed assessor by the county commission in March 2023 after longtime assessor Janie Hoffman stepped down, was unopposed for the Democratic nomination.

"I'm glad it's over with," Kleinsasser said in the courthouse shortly after the final ballots were tallied. "It was kind of a stressful thing. I'm not really a politician."

A phone message and email to Byrd requesting comment were not returned.

Byrd previously served one term on the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission. He also made two unsuccessful runs for U.S. representative.

The Byrd-Kleinsasser race was the only contested one in the county.

Quay County Clerk Ellen White blamed that lack of contested races for light turnout in the county.

About 31% of active voters participated in the primary election, she reported. White said the historical norm for primaries is 40% and up.

White said the number of early voters and absentee ballots also was down compared to previous primary elections.

Statewide voter turnout also was low - less than 23%, according to data from the New Mexico Secretary of State.

President Joe Biden earned 77% of the Democratic vote in the county. Opponent Marianne Williamson gained 12%, and 11% of the voters were uncommitted.

Donald Trump received 93% of the Republican vote in the county, compared to 5% for Nikki Haley and 1% for Chris Christie. Another candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy, received four votes but polled zero percent. About 1% of the GOP voters were uncommitted.

For state senator in District 8, incumbent Democrat Pete Campos attracted 78% of the vote in the county, easily outpacing G. Michael Lopez. District-wide, Campos won by 10 percentage points.

Other Democratic candidates who were unopposed:

- Martin Heinrich, incumbent U.S. senator;

- Teresa Leger Fernandez, incumbent U.S. representative, District 3;

- Veronica Manley, county clerk;

- Robert Lopez, incumbent county commissioner, District 1;

Other Republican candidates who were unopposed:

- Nella Domenici, U.S. senator;

- Sharon Clahchischilliage, U.S. representative, District 3;

- Pat Woods, incumbent state senator, District 7;

- Jack Chatfield, incumbent state representative, District 67;

- Michael Taylor, Public Education commissioner, District 8;

- Heidi Adams, 10th Judicial District attorney;

- Albenita Rael, Quay County treasurer;

- Dallas Dowell, Quay County commissioner, District 1;

- Jerri Rush, incumbent Quay County commissioner, District 2.

One Libertarian candidate, David Holman, won his party's nomination for the District 2 seat on the Quay County commission. He was unopposed. No other Libertarian filed for local office.