Luciano Varela
Luciano 'Lucky' Varela (b. February 17, 1935) is a former Democratic member of the New Mexico House of Representatives, representing District 48 from 1987 to 2017.
Varela did not seek re-election to the New Mexico House of Representatives in 2016.
Biography
Varela earned a B.B.A. from the College of Santa Fe in 1968 and a J.D. from LaSalle Extension University in 1974. Varela served as a Corporal in the United States Army from 1957 to 1959.[1]
Committee assignments
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Varela served on the following committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Appropriations and Finance |
| • Transportation and Public Works |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Varela served on the following committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Appropriations and Finance |
| • Health, Government and Indian Affairs |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Varela served on the following committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Appropriations and Finance, Vice chair |
| • Health and Government Affairs |
| • Printing and Supplies, Chair |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Varela served on the following committees:
| New Mexico committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Appropriations and Finance |
| • Health and Government Affairs |
| • Printing and Supplies |
Issues
Lawsuit against Gov. Martinez
Mimi Stewart, Henry Saavedra, John Arthur Smith and “Lucky” Varela filed two lawsuits against Gov. Susana Martinez over her line-item vetoes in an unemployment bill and a housing bill.
Raul Burciaga, the director of the Legislative Council Service, told committee members of the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) May 19, 2011 that in his opinion two line-item vetoes made by Gov. Martinez violate the state’s constitution.
“Some of the governor’s vetoes seem to impinge on the legislature’s appropriation powers and plow new ground in a governor’s exercise of the veto authority,” said Burciaga.
That day, Gov. Martinez firmly said she disagreed.
“I could protest any governor doing this … it’s not partisan,” Sen. Stuart Ingle. “She’s a good governor … but it’s a little bit of stretch to do this.”
Burciaga testified that the veto Martinez made in unemployment bill H.B. 59 is part of a revenue bill and “did not authorize the expenditure of state money because that authorization was already in statute and not amended in this bill.” Burciaga said the veto is “unconstitutional and, hence, unenforceable.”
The second veto came when Gov. Martinez reduced an appropriation the legislature made to budget bill H.B. 2 from $150,000 to $50,000. Burciaga said that while state courts have not addressed the issue specifically, reducing “an item of appropriation is a legislative function that the governor has no power to do.”
“I think we need to challenge this in the courts,” Rep. Luciano “Lucky” Varela (D-Santa Fe) said.
“The main difficulty I have is changing the figure [from $150,000 down to $50,000 in HB2],” Ingle said, expressing concern that if the current partisan makeup of the Roundhouse were reversed, a future Democratic governor could assume greater power at the expense of the legislative branch. ”We just can’t go there.”[2][3]
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2016
Elections for the New Mexico House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 7, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 8, 2016. Incumbent Luciano Varela (D) did not seek re-election.
Linda Trujillo ran unopposed in the New Mexico House of Representatives District 48 general election.[4][5]
| New Mexico House of Representatives District 48, General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Linda Trujillo (unopposed) |
100.00% | 10,572 | |
| Total Votes | 10,572 | |||
| Source: New Mexico Secretary of State | ||||
Linda Trujillo defeated Paul D. Campos and Jeff A. Varela in the New Mexico House of Representatives District 48 Democratic primary.[6]
| New Mexico House of Representatives District 48, Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Linda Trujillo |
39.47% | 2,415 | |
| Democratic | Paul D. Campos | 31.56% | 1,931 | |
| Democratic | Jeff A. Varela | 28.98% | 1,773 | |
| Total Votes | 6,119 | |||
2014
Elections for the New Mexico House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on June 3, 2014, and a general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 4, 2014. Incumbent Luciano Varela was unopposed in the Democratic primary and was unchallenged in the general election.[7][8]
2012
Varela ran for re-election in 2012. He ran unopposed in the June 5, 2012, Democratic primary and was unchallenged in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[9][10]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Luciano Varela Incumbent |
79.6% | 9,655 | |
| Libertarian | Bob Walsh | 20.4% | 2,477 | |
| Total Votes | 12,132 | |||
2010
Varela won re-election to District 48 in 2010. He had no primary opposition and defeated Bob Walsh (R) in the general election which took place on November 2, 2010.[11]
| New Mexico House of Representatives General Election, District 48 (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Luciano Varela (D)
|
7,776 | 78.50% | ||
| Bob Walsh (R) | 2,128 | 21.50% | ||
Soundbites from bipartisan forum
Luciano Varela and his opponent Bob Walsh spoke at a forum in late September 2010.[12]
2008
On November 4, 2008, Varela won re-election to District 48 in the New Mexico House of Representatives. Varela had no challenger.[13]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of New Mexico scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2016
- Conservation Voters New Mexico: 2015-2016 Scorecard
- Legislators are scored on environmental and conservation issues.
- Rio Grande Foundation: NM Freedom Index 2016
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills relating to economic issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the 52nd New Mexico State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 20 through March 21.[14]
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the 51st New Mexico State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 21 through February 20.[14]
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 51st New Mexico State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 15 to March 16.[14]
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the 50th New Mexico State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 17 through February 16.[14]
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the 50th New Mexico State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 18 through March 19.[15]
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Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Varela is divorced with three children.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for Luciano + Varela + New + Mexico + Legislature
- All stories may not be relevant to this legislator due to the nature of the search engine.
See also
- New Mexico House of Representatives
- House Committees
- New Mexico State Legislature
- New Mexico state legislative districts
External links
- Profile from Open States
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- New Mexico Votes profile
- Campaign contributions via Follow the Money
Footnotes
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Biography," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ Capitol Report New Mexico, "Lawmakers file suit over Susana vetoes," accessed May 26, 2011
- ↑ Capitol Report New Mexico, "Legislative director says two vetoes from Susana are unconstitutional," accessed May 19, 2011
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2016 general election contest/candidate list," accessed August 18, 2016
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "Official Results General Election - November 8, 2016," accessed November 29, 2016
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Election Contest/Candidate List," accessed March 10, 2016
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "Official Results Primary Election - June 3, 2014," accessed July 7, 2014
- ↑ New Mexico State Legislature, "2014 Primary Election Candidates," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "Official Primary Results," accessed April 15, 2014
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Candidate List," accessed May 13, 2014(Archived)
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2010 General Election results," accessed May 12, 2014
- ↑ New Mexico Watchdog, "Soundbites from candidates forum: Lucky Varela (D) vs. Bob Walsh (R)," accessed October 2, 2010
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "Official 2008 General Election Results," accessed April 15, 2014
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 New Mexico Legislature, "Session dates," accessed July 9, 2014
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2011 Legislative Sessions Calendar," accessed June 6, 2014 (Archived)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by ' |
New Mexico House of Representatives - District 48 1987–2017 |
Succeeded by Linda Trujillo (D) |
