New Mexico State Senate District 26
| New Mexico State Senate District 26 | ||
 | ||
| Current incumbent | Jacob Candelaria  | |
| Population | 48,495 | |
| Race | 19.9% White, 3.8% Native American, 2.6% Black, 1.4% Asian, 70.4% Hispanic, 1.8% Other Races[1] | |
| Ethnicity | 29.6% Non-Hispanic, 70.4% Hispanic | |
| Voting age | 73.2% age 18 and over | |
New Mexico's twenty-sixth state senate district is represented by Democratic Senator Jacob Candelaria.
As of the 2010 census, a total of 48,495 civilians reside within New Mexico's twenty-sixth state senate district.[2] New Mexico state senators represent an average of 49,028 residents, as of the 2010 Census.[3] After the 2000 Census, each member represented 43,311 residents.[4]
About the office
Members of the New Mexico State Senate serve four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. In odd-numbered years, state senators meet 60 days; in even-numbered years, they meet 30 days. New Mexico legislators assume office on the first day of January after a general election.[5]
Qualifications
Article 4, Section 3 of the New Mexico Constitution states:[6]
| “ | Senators shall not be less than twenty-five years of age and representatives not less than twenty-one years of age at the time of their election. If any senator or representative permanently removes his residence from or maintains no residence in the district from which he was elected, then he shall be deemed to have resigned and his successor shall be selected as provided in Section 4 of this article. No person shall be eligible to serve in the legislature who, at the time of qualifying, holds any office of trust or profit with the state, county or national governments, except notaries public and officers of the militia who receive no salary.[7] | ” |
The New Mexico State Legislature states that individuals must be U.S. citizens.[8]
When signing the declaration of candidacy, candidates must affirm that they are registered to vote.[9]
Salaries
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2025[10] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $0/year | $202/day |
Vacancies
If there is a vacancy in the New Mexico State Legislature, the board of county commissioners is responsible for filling the vacancy. There are no deadlines set by Article IV, Section 4 of the New Mexico Constitution, which governs legislative vacancies. If the legislative district spans more than one county, the boards of county commissioners each submit one name to the governor, who appoints a candidate from the list.[11] The appointed replacement serves for the remainder of the unfilled term.[12]
See sources: New Mexico Const. Art. 4, Sec. 4
District map
Elections
2020
- See also: New Mexico State Senate elections, 2020
General election
General election for New Mexico State Senate District 26
Incumbent Jacob Candelaria defeated Manuel Lardizabal in the general election for New Mexico State Senate District 26 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Jacob Candelaria (D) | 65.8 | 12,237 |
| Manuel Lardizabal (R) | 34.2 | 6,362 | ||
| Total votes: 18,599 | |||
 = 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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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for New Mexico State Senate District 26
Incumbent Jacob Candelaria advanced from the Democratic primary for New Mexico State Senate District 26 on June 2, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jacob Candelaria | 100.0 | 4,572 |
| Total votes: 4,572 | |||
| = 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 New Mexico State Senate District 26
Manuel Lardizabal advanced from the Republican primary for New Mexico State Senate District 26 on June 2, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Manuel Lardizabal | 100.0 | 1,709 | |
| Total votes: 1,709 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
2016
- See also: New Mexico State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the New Mexico State Senate 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 Jacob Candelaria ran unopposed in the New Mexico State Senate District 26 general election.[13][14]
| New Mexico State Senate District 26, General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Jacob Candelaria Incumbent (unopposed) |
100.00% | 11,330 | |
| Total Votes | 11,330 | |||
| Source: New Mexico Secretary of State | ||||
Incumbent Jacob Candelaria ran unopposed in the New Mexico State Senate District 26 Democratic primary.[15]
| New Mexico State Senate District 26, Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Jacob Candelaria Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2012
- See also: New Mexico State Senate elections, 2012
Elections for the office of New Mexico State Senate consisted of a primary election on June 5, 2012, and a general election on November 6, 2012. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 20, 2012. Jacob Candelaria (D) was unopposed in the general election and defeated Carlos Jose Villanueva in the Democratic primary.[16][17][18]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Jacob Candelaria |
100% | 11,463 | |
| Total Votes | 11,463 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Jacob Candelaria |
68.9% | 1,835 |
| Carlos Jose Villanueva | 31.1% | 828 |
| Total Votes | 2,663 | |
Campaign contributions
From 2000 to 2024, candidates for New Mexico State Senate District 26 raised a total of $832,079. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $59,434 on average. All figures come from Follow the Money
| Campaign contributions, New Mexico State Senate District 26 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Amount | Candidates | Average |
| 2024 | $353,924 | 2 | $176,962 |
| 2020 | $182,942 | 2 | $91,471 |
| 2016 | $48,796 | 1 | $48,796 |
| 2012 | $59,606 | 2 | $29,803 |
| 2008 | $45,597 | 2 | $22,799 |
| 2004 | $31,123 | 2 | $15,562 |
| 2000 | $110,091 | 3 | $36,697 |
| Total | $832,079 | 14 | $59,434 |
See also
- New Mexico State Legislature
- New Mexico State Senate
- New Mexico House of Representatives
- New Mexico state legislative districts
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ For more information on the parameters the U.S. Census Bureau use, please see our Race and Ethnicity on the United States Census page.
- ↑ http://www.nmlegis.gov, "New Mexico Redistricting: Senate Joint Plan Maps and Data," accessed October 8, 2013
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Population Distribution and Change: 2000 to 2010," accessed January 6, 2014
- ↑ www.census.gov/, "Population in 2000 of the American states," accessed January 6, 2014
- ↑ New Mexico Constitution, "Article IV, Section 4, accessed November 1, 2021
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "New Mexico Constitution- Article 4, Section 3," accessed May 23, 2025
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ New Mexico State Legislature, "State Legislature Handbook," accessed May 27, 2025 (page 2)
- ↑ Justia, "NM Stat § 1-22-8 (2024)," accessed May 29, 2025
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2025 Legislator Compensation," December 2, 2025
- ↑ Justia US Law, "2021 New Mexico Statutes Section 2-8D-4," accessed February 6, 2023
- ↑ New Mexico Legislature, "New Mexico Constitution," accessed February 11, 2021 (Article IV, Section 4)
- ↑ 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, "Primary Candidate List," accessed March 23, 2012
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2012 Primary election results," accessed December 4, 2013
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State, "2012 General election results," accessed December 4, 2013
