Draft Tom Udall for NM Senate Gains More and More Attention

The Movement to Draft Tom Udall to run for the United States Senate from New Mexico is getting more and more attention everyday, including from the national press.

Shortly after Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM) announced that he would not seek re-election, Congressman Udall too abruptly announced that he would not seek the seat in 2008. Most people attribute this move to his new seat on the House Appropriations committee, making him one of the most powerful Members in Congress.

The top-tier Democratic Candidate instead? A DINO! Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez might not even deserve to be called a Moderate. Matt Stoller over at Open Left has done two really great pieces on Marty and why he cannot be our Democratic Candidate from New Mexico. (Please, No Marty Chavez for Senate and New Mexico: Reactionary Democrats Can't Run Campaigns).

Chavez has not only endorsed Republicans in New Mexico before, but he seems to be running scared even of Tom Udall, who already took his name out of the race:

"Philosophically, he's so far to the left," Chávez said. "I'd rather not have him in the race, but that's a challenge I'd not shy away from."

This isn't what anyone wants to hear or see from a Democratic candidate for Senate. For someone who has said,

"I think I get a bad rap from progressives,"

mudslinging against other popular Dems in the state who aren't even running against you is a sure sign of insecurity and audacious.

But Tom Udall is a real progressive and is well respected across the state. Not only that, but a recent SurveyUSA poll has him destroying Republican opponents in the general election (see more below the fold, including his numbers compared with Martin Chavez's).

New Mexicans and people across the country are responding: since the beginning of the effort, we have been asking for small donations of $5 to show the Congressman broad support. Since then, the netroots have given over $1,100!

Four days ago, the Draft also featured about 400 petition signatures. That day, we changed the strategy, including a petition question asking people to pledge money for the Congressman's Senate campaign account; since then another $1,200 has been pledged! (Sign the petition here)

Yesterday, the Draft was featured on page A2 of the Washington Post in an article by Chris Cillizza. It makes sense why the Draft is getting so much attention. It's not because of our fancy html (it's really not) but because Tom Udall is a first rate choice to run for the Senate. As Cillizza writes,

Udall has held northern New Mexico's 3rd District seat since 1998 and has stockpiled an impressive cash reserve, $802,000, that could be directly transferred to a Senate bid. He carries a potent last name in Democratic politics: His father, Stewart L. Udall, represented Arizona in Congress and was secretary of the interior; uncle Morris K. Udall was another Arizona congressman and a presidential candidate; and cousin Mark Udall is a congressman from Colorado who also happens to be running for Senate in 2008.

The most encouraging piece of the article, however, was this:

The fact that Udall is not currently reconsidering the race does not mean he won't do just that in the coming weeks. Democratic insiders acknowledge as much in not-for-attribution conversations with The Sunday Fix.

Days before, The Draft Udall was given coverage in The Hill, a special newspaper circulated in Washington, DC to every office in Congress. None of this would be possible, of course, without the strong backing of the netroots since the start. See the Draft Udall Around the Web page to track the various articles and blog posts written about the movement over the past month.

Many supporters of the Draft sent emails applauding the efforts to collect $5 donations but lamented that they'd rather not contribute to his account unless he's really committed; now we're changing the strategy.

We're going to send an even stronger message! Sign the Petition and tell Congressman Udall how much you'll pledge if he runs for the US Senate ($2,300 is the Federal campaign limit). If you don't, NMFBIHOP points out, we might face the problem of having Martin Chavez as our Senator. Or even worse, Wilson or Pearce.

As promised, here are Congressman Udall and Mayor Martin Chavez's poll numbers versus Republicans in the general election:

Against Republican candidate Steven Pearce, Congressman from New Mexico's 2nd District: * Pearce loses to Congressman Tom Udall by 18 points * defeats Albuquerque Mayor Marty Chavez by 21 points

Against Republican candidate Heather Wilson, Congresswoman from New Mexico's 1st Congressional District: * Wilson loses to Udall by 18 points (same as Pearce), * defeats Chavez by 4 points (Wilson runs 17 points weaker than Pearce)

Comments

[Phidippides]

I was in DC when Domenici made his announcement, and had a meeting with Udall that day, just as a constituent. I didn't mention the situation to him, but told his staffer, who gave a number of us a tour of the Capitol, that I'd done a Google search on Tom that morning and that three of the first five hits were about hoping that Udall would run for the Senate. Tom is a great congressman, doing good work, and I wouldn't blame him for not wanting to upend his career. But given the short list of Democratic contenders for Domenici's seat, I'm amazed that I have so little hope of improvement with his retirement. Chavez is a Party creature, and given the ineptitude of party leadership in New Mexico when it comes to fielding candidates, I would not be surprised if they felt beholden to give him a shot at the Senate, even if he has little chance of winning. Wilson is hobbled by her involvement with David Iglesias' dismissal from the US Attorney's office in Albuquerque, as well as the decline of esteem for and trust in the Republican Party in general - but it remains to be seen if the NM Democratic Party are capable of taking advantage of that handicap by fielding a good candidate or supporting them once the campaigns start.

[FatJoe]

I agree that Udall announced he would not run way, way too early and I would LOVE to work for a Udall Senate campaign. But, from a purely analytical point of view, I really wonder how credible those Wilson-Udall numbers are. The conservative southern part of the state would clearly be Wilson's to walk away with, while a majority of voters in the populous north-central district (Albuquerque and its ever-suburbanizing environs) have cast votes for Wilson many times already. I'm worried that the numbers, name recognition, and momentum really would be on Heather's side.

But I'll be pounding the pavement for him if Udall reconsiders! Do it Tom!

Marty Chavez would be an utter disaster; only the Bushies are more hostile to science when it comes time to do things like challenge the real estate developers or deal honestly with water issues.

[magarts]

As a resident of southern New Mexico, I've not had opportunity to vote for Tom Udall. My sense is that he has been an effective and right thinking Congressman. His seat in the House is secure.

Why then, would it be wise for the Donkey Party to want to nominate him? Richardson will soon admit that he has little chance at the D Pres nomination and is most likely to enter the Senatorial race. As a proven statewide vote getter, he'll be a virtual shoe-in. And Udall will be the one looking for a another job.

Oh, FYI, I'm a life-long Republican who has never voted a straight ticket.

[Fez]

As a resident of northern New Mexico, I've signed the petition urging Tom Udall to run for Senate and will send him money if he does so. New Mexico needs a Senator to represent its multi-ethnic population and Udall has proven to be a pragmatic progressive as a Representative. Wilson is poisoned by her blind allegiance to Bush and Pearce... well, Pearce represents Far West Texas, which is what his district is. Chavez is a dwarf in the DLC mode of Democrat. Richardson, who has absolutely no connection to New Mexico other than expediency, is moving back to DC one way or another, either as VP on the Dem ticket or as a cabinet secretary in the next Dem administration. Udall needs to make his move by Christmas to win.