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New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District election, 2026

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2024
New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: February 3, 2026
Primary: June 2, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in New Mexico

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Lean Democratic
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Tilt Democratic
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Lean Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District
U.S. Senate1st2nd3rd
New Mexico elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

All U.S. House districts, including the 2nd Congressional District of New Mexico, are holding elections in 2026. The general election is November 3, 2026. The primary is June 2, 2026. The filing deadline for candidates seeking pre-primary designation is February 3, 2026. Candidates who do not receive the party designation must file by March 10, 2026. For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

General election

The primary will occur on June 2, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Incumbent Gabriel Vasquez and Tom Wakely are running in the Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 2, 2026.


Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Eddy Aragon, Greg Cunningham, and Jose Orozco are running in the Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 2, 2026.


Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Candidate profiles

There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here.

Voting information

See also: Voting in New Mexico

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Gabriel Vasquez Democratic Party $1,462,628 $512,652 $989,062 As of September 30, 2025
Tom Wakely Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Eddy Aragon Republican Party $4,522 $178 $4,344 As of September 30, 2025
Greg Cunningham Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
Jose Orozco Republican Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[1]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[2][3][4]

Race ratings: New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District election, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
1/27/20261/20/20261/13/20261/6/2026
The Cook Political Report with Amy WalterLean DemocraticLean DemocraticToss-upToss-up
Decision Desk HQ and The HillPendingPendingPendingPending
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesTilt DemocraticTilt DemocraticTilt DemocraticTilt Democratic
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallLean DemocraticLean DemocraticLean DemocraticLean Democratic
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in New Mexico in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in New Mexico, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
New Mexico U.S. House Democratic 835 N/A 2/3/2026: Candidates seeking pre-primary designation; 3/10/2026: Candidates not seeking pre-primary designation Source
New Mexico U.S. House Libertarian 88 N/A 2/3/2026: Candidates seeking pre-primary designation; 3/10/2026: Candidates not seeking pre-primary designation Source
New Mexico U.S. House Republican 783 N/A 2/3/2026: Candidates seeking pre-primary designation; 3/10/2026: Candidates not seeking pre-primary designation Source
New Mexico U.S. House Unaffiliated 4,715 N/A 6/25/2026 Source

Democratic-held U.S. House district that Trump won

See also: U.S. House districts represented by a Democrat in 2026 and won by Donald Trump in 2024

This is one of 14 U.S. House districts Democrats are defending that Donald Trump (R) won in 2024. The map below highlights those districts. Hover over or click a district to see information such as the incumbent and the presidential vote counts.

District history

The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2020.

General election

General election for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Incumbent Gabriel Vasquez (D) defeated Yvette Herrell (R) in the general election for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Gabriel Vasquez
Gabriel Vasquez (D)
 
52.1
 
138,177
Image of Yvette Herrell
Yvette Herrell (R)
 
47.9
 
127,145

Total votes: 265,322
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Incumbent Gabriel Vasquez (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 4, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Gabriel Vasquez
Gabriel Vasquez
 
100.0
 
29,613

Total votes: 29,613
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Yvette Herrell (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 4, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Yvette Herrell
Yvette Herrell
 
100.0
 
23,216

Total votes: 23,216
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

General election

General election for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Gabriel Vasquez (D) defeated incumbent Yvette Herrell (R) and Eliseo Luna (D) in the general election for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Gabriel Vasquez
Gabriel Vasquez (D)
 
50.3
 
96,986
Image of Yvette Herrell
Yvette Herrell (R)
 
49.6
 
95,636
Image of Eliseo Luna
Eliseo Luna (D) (Write-in) Candidate Connection
 
0.0
 
51

Total votes: 192,673
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Gabriel Vasquez (D) defeated Darshan Patel (D) in the Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Gabriel Vasquez
Gabriel Vasquez
 
76.1
 
24,010
Image of Darshan Patel
Darshan Patel  Candidate Connection
 
23.9
 
7,534

Total votes: 31,544
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Incumbent Yvette Herrell (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Yvette Herrell
Yvette Herrell
 
100.0
 
28,623

Total votes: 28,623
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

General election

General election for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Yvette Herrell (R) defeated incumbent Xochitl Torres Small (D) and Steve Jones (Independent) in the general election for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Yvette Herrell
Yvette Herrell (R)
 
53.7
 
142,283
Image of Xochitl Torres Small
Xochitl Torres Small (D)
 
46.3
 
122,546
Image of Steve Jones
Steve Jones (Independent) (Write-in) Candidate Connection
 
0.0
 
117

Total votes: 264,946
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Incumbent Xochitl Torres Small (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Xochitl Torres Small
Xochitl Torres Small
 
100.0
 
48,095

Total votes: 48,095
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2

Yvette Herrell (R) defeated Claire Chase (R) and Chris Mathys (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House New Mexico District 2 on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Yvette Herrell
Yvette Herrell
 
44.7
 
26,968
Image of Claire Chase
Claire Chase
 
31.5
 
19,017
Image of Chris Mathys
Chris Mathys
 
23.8
 
14,378

Total votes: 60,363
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

  • District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
  • Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
  • State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.


Below is the district map in place for this election. Click the map below to enlarge it.

2023_01_03_nm_congressional_district_02.jpg
See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2026
Information about competitiveness will be added here as it becomes available.

Partisan Voter Index

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is EVEN. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were about the same as the national average. This made New Mexico's 2nd the 211th most Republican district nationally.[5]

2020 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.

2024 presidential results in New Mexico's 2nd Congressional District
Kamala Harris Democratic PartyDonald Trump Republican Party
48.0%50.0%

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in New Mexico, 2024

New Mexico presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 17 Democratic wins
  • 12 Republican wins
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party N/A N/A N/A D D R R R D D D D D R R D D R R R R R R D D D R D D D D D
See also: Party control of New Mexico state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of New Mexico's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from New Mexico
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 2 3 5
Republican 0 0 0
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 3 5

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in New Mexico's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in New Mexico, October 2025
OfficeOfficeholder
GovernorDemocratic Party Michelle Lujan Grisham
Lieutenant GovernorDemocratic Party Howie Morales
Secretary of StateDemocratic Party Maggie Toulouse Oliver
Attorney GeneralDemocratic Party Raul Torrez

State legislature

New Mexico State Senate

Party As of January 2026
     Democratic Party 26
     Republican Party 16
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 42

New Mexico House of Representatives

Party As of January 2026
     Democratic Party 44
     Republican Party 26
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 70

Trifecta control

New Mexico Party Control: 1992-2025
Eighteen years of Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D
Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
House D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R D D D D D D D D D

See also

New Mexico 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
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New Mexico congressional delegation
Voting in New Mexico
New Mexico elections:
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Democratic primary battlegrounds
Republican primary battlegrounds
U.S. Senate Democratic primaries
U.S. Senate Republican primaries
U.S. House Democratic primaries
U.S. House Republican primaries
U.S. Congress elections
U.S. Senate elections
U.S. House elections
Special elections
Ballot access

External links

Footnotes

  1. Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  2. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  3. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  4. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
  5. Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
Democratic Party (5)