Mayoral election in Albuquerque, New Mexico (2025)
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| 2025 Albuquerque elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: July 7, 2025 (publicly financed) August 26, 2025 (privately financed) September 2, 2025 (write-in) |
| General election: November 4, 2025 Runoff election: December 9, 2025 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: Mayor |
| Total seats up: 1 (click here for other city elections) |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2025 |
Incumbent Mayor Tim Keller defeated Darren White to win the nonpartisan election for mayor of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in a Dec. 9, 2025, runoff. Keller earned 58.4% of the vote, and White earned 41.6% in the runoff. The two candidates advanced to the runoff after Keller earned 36.6% of the vote in the general election, and White earned 31.3%.
While the position is officially nonpartisan, Keller identified himself as a Democrat on his campaign website, and White identified himself as a Republican in a campaign advertisement.[1][2]
Keller, who was first elected mayor in 2017, ran on his record. According to his campaign website, "Tim Keller is running for reelection for two clear reasons. First, he’s done the real work to repair decades-long challenges holding our city back. ... Second, he’s running to stand up to Trump’s policies and the harmful cuts that threaten our families and safety."[3]
White was head of the New Mexico State Police and sheriff of Bernalillo County.[4] On his campaign website, White said, "I have a proven record of fighting crime, protecting our communities, and upholding law and order. I’ll unshackle the police, end Mayor Keller’s failed sanctuary policies, clean up homeless encampments, and restore safety to Albuquerque’s streets, parks, and businesses while cutting government waste and making our city a place where families and businesses can thrive again."[5]
Keller and White participated in a November 11 debate hosted by KOB-TV. The candidates disagreed on crime, with Keller saying that crime was decreasing and White saying that "nobody believes that."[6] On homelessness, White said, "When I’m elected, the homeless tent cities will come down on day one," while Keller said White's approach to homelessness would be "Trump-like roundups and chaos and violence."[6] Keller also defended the city's immigration policies, while White said he would allow city police to cooperate with federal immigration officers.[6]
Albuquerque Journal's Nakayla McClelland and Colleen Heild wrote, "There’s a stark contrast between the plans proposed by incumbent and challenger in the lead-up to the Dec. 9 runoff election" about public safety. According to McClelland and Heild, Keller "wants to expand the Albuquerque Police Department’s burgeoning 'crime fighting shield' of advanced technology," and White "would instead pursue past strategies like sending officers to patrol the streets, writing more traffic tickets and serving warrants."[7]
Keller qualified for public financing. According to campaign finance reports, Keller received $377,973 in public funds toward the runoff, and White had raised $215,228, as of November 24, 2025, filings.[8][9]
This page is about the general election runoff between Keller and White. To read more information about the Nov. 4 general election, click here.
Candidates and election results
General runoff election
General runoff election for Mayor of Albuquerque
Incumbent Tim Keller defeated Darren White in the general runoff election for Mayor of Albuquerque on December 9, 2025.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Tim Keller (Nonpartisan) | 58.4 | 48,567 |
 | Darren White (Nonpartisan) | 41.6 | 34,541 | |
| Total votes: 83,108 | |||
 = 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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General election
General election for Mayor of Albuquerque
The following candidates ran in the general election for Mayor of Albuquerque on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Tim Keller (Nonpartisan) | 35.7 | 47,911 |
| ✔ | | Darren White (Nonpartisan) | 30.6 | 41,137 |
 | Alexander Uballez (Nonpartisan) | 18.8 | 25,213 | |
 | Louie Sanchez (Nonpartisan) | 6.4 | 8,647 | |
 | Mayling Armijo (Nonpartisan) | 5.7 | 7,673 | |
 | Eddie Varela (Nonpartisan) | 1.7 | 2,280 | |
| Total votes: 134,227 | |||
| = 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
- Patrick Sais (Nonpartisan)
- Alpana Adair (Nonpartisan)
- Brian Fejer (Nonpartisan)
- Daniel Chavez (Nonpartisan) (Unofficially withdrew)
- Adeo Herrick (Nonpartisan)
Voting information
What was the voter registration deadline?
- In-person: Dec. 9
- By mail: Postmarked by Nov. 11
- Online: Nov. 11
What was the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?
- In-person: Nov. 25
- By mail: Received by Nov. 25
- Online: Nov. 25
What was the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?
- In-person: Dec. 9
- By mail: Received by Dec. 9
Was early voting available to all voters? Yes
What were the early voting start and end dates? Dec. 1-Dec. 6
Were all voters required to present ID at the polls? No
When were polls open on Election Day? 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM
Candidate comparison
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Incumbent: Yes
Political Office:
- New Mexico State Auditor (2015-2017)
- New Mexico State Senate - District 17 (2009-2014)
Biography: Keller earned a bachelor's degree in art history from the University of Notre Dame and a master's degree in business administration from Harvard University. Before public office, he worked in the private sector and for Tribal governments.
Show sources
Sources: Tim Keller 2025 campaign website, "Why Tim?" accessed September 23, 2025; KUNM, "Albuquerque Mayor upholds immigrant protections in the face of federal threats," August 26, 2025; Tim Keller 2025 campaign website, "Candidate Comparison," accessed September 23, 2025; City of Albuquerque, "About Mayor Timothy M. Keller and First Lady Elizabeth J. Kistin Keller, PhD," accessed September 23, 2025; One Alburquerque, "Biography of Mayor Tim M. Keller," accessed September 23, 2025
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Albuquerque in 2025.
Incumbent: No
Biography: White served in the United States Army before becoming a police officer and earning a bachelor's degree in management. He later worked as the head of the New Mexico Department of Public Safety, sheriff of Bernalillo County, Albuquerque public safety director, chief executive officer of a medical cannabis producer, and radio show host.
Show sources
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Albuquerque in 2025.
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 completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign advertisements
This section includes a selection of up to three campaign advertisements per candidate released in this race, as well as links to candidates' YouTube, Vimeo, and/or Facebook video pages. If you are aware of other links that should be included, please email us.
Tim Keller
Darren White
Click expand on the panels below to view White's campaign ads from Instagram:
Endorsements
Click the links below to see official endorsement lists published on candidate campaign websites for any candidates that make that information available. If you are aware of a website that should be included, please email us.
Election spending
Campaign finance
Candidates in this election submitted campaign finance reports to the City Clerk's Office. Click here to access those reports.
Satellite spending
- See also: Satellite spending
Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[10][11][12]
If available, this section includes links to online resources tracking satellite spending in this election. To notify us of a resource to add, email us.
Mayoral partisanship
Twenty-seven of the 100 largest cities held mayoral elections in 2025. Once mayors elected in 2025 assumed office, 67 top-100 mayors were affiliated with the Democratic Party, 22 were Republicans, one was a Libertarian, three were independents, and five were nonpartisan. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown.
The following top 100 cities saw a change in mayoral partisan affiliation in 2025.
- Omaha, Nebraska: Democrat John Ewing Jr. was elected to succeed Republican Jean Stothert on May 13. Ewing Jr. assumed office on June 9.[13]
- Garland, Texas: Nonpartisan Dylan Hedrick was elected to succeed Republican Scott LeMay in the general runoff election on June 7. Hedrick assumed office on June 17.[14]
- Miami, Florida: Democrat Eileen Higgins was elected to suceed Republican Francis Suarez in the general runoff on December 9.[15] Higgins assumed office on December 18, 2025.
Help inform our readers
Take our candidate survey
- See also: Survey
At Ballotpedia, we believe that everyone deserves meaningful, reliable, trustworthy information about their candidates. We also know that good information—especially at the local level—is hard to find. That's why Ballotpedia created Candidate Connection.
We ask all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Our survey helps voters better understand how their candidates think about the world and how they intend to govern—information they need to feel confident they're picking the best person for the role.
If you are a candidate, take our survey here. Or you can ask a candidate to take the survey by sharing the link with them.
Submit endorsements
Endorsements can be particularly helpful for voters trying to decide between candidates in local races, which often feature nonpartisan candidates. Endorsements from individuals and organizations can help voters better understand policy differences between candidates in these cases where little or no other news coverage of policy stances exists.
Candidates, share endorsements here. Readers, share endorsements you know about here.
About the city
- See also: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is a city in Bernalillo County, New Mexico. As of 2020, its population was 564,559.
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of Albuquerque uses a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body while the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Albuquerque, New Mexico | ||
|---|---|---|
| Albuquerque | New Mexico | |
| Population | 564,559 | 2,117,522 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 187 | 121,312 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 70.3% | 70% |
| Black/African American | 3.1% | 2.1% |
| Asian | 3% | 1.6% |
| Native American | 4.5% | 9.3% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Other (single race) | N/A | 8.8% |
| Multiple | 9.2% | 8.1% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 49.2% | 49.2% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 90.9% | 86.5% |
| College graduation rate | 36.5% | 28.1% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $53,936 | $51,243 |
| Persons below poverty level | 16% | 18.6% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
2025 battleground elections
- See also: Battlegrounds
This was a battleground election. Other 2025 battleground elections included:
- New Jersey gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2025 (June 10 Democratic primary)
- Rock Ridge Public Schools, Minnesota, elections (2025)
- Virginia's 11th Congressional District special election, 2025 (June 28 Democratic firehouse primary)
See also
| Albuquerque, New Mexico | New Mexico | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Tim Keller 2025 campaign website, "Issues & Support at a Glance," accessed November 25, 2025
- ↑ Instagram, "Darren White," accessed November 25, 2025
- ↑ Tim Keller 2025 campaign website, "Why Tim?" accessed November 25, 2025
- ↑ Darren White 2025 campaign website, "About," accessed November 25, 2025
- ↑ Darren White 2025 campaign website, "Plan for Albuquerque," accessed November 25, 2025
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Albuquerque Journal, "Mayoral runoff candidates sidestep policy, trade barbs in debate," November 12, 2025
- ↑ Albuquerque Journal, "The candidates' plans to deliver on crime-fighting promises if elected mayor," December 1, 2025
- ↑ City of Albuquerque Campaign Finance System, "Timothy Keller," accessed December 1, 2025
- ↑ City of Albuquerque Campaign Finance System, "Darren White," accessed December 1, 2025
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ National Review.com, "Why the Media Hate Super PACs," December 12, 2021
- ↑ KETV, "John Ewing Jr.'s historic inauguration as Omaha's mayor," June 10, 2025
- ↑ Garland, Texas, "Dylan Hedrick Returns to City Hall as Garland's 38th Mayor," June 18, 2025
- ↑ New York Times, "Miami Elects First Democratic Mayor in Nearly 30 Years," December 9, 2025
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