KRWG Public Media spoke with candidates up for election on election night. KRWG’s Noah Raess spoke with Micaela Lara Cadena, a Democratic candidate for New Mexico state representative in district 33. Here’s their conversation.
Noah Raess:
How are you feeling tonight so far?
Micaela Lara Cadena:
I am incredibly humbled tonight. Elections mean a lot. Local elections matter. And today our community showed up and showed our values.
Noah Raess:
And how would you describe your campaign and how do you feel about the campaign that you ran?
Micaela Lara Cadena:
I've been saying for decades, Noah, that deserve voters deserve honest and accurate information. So that's what we did. We showed up. We knocked on doors, we held lots of conversations, and we moved with integrity. Unfortunately, this was a pretty dirty election with lots of outside interests and dark money coming in. But voters saw right through that. And here we are to celebrate tonight.
Noah Raess:
And if things go your way, what are you looking forward to working on next and I guess what are your plans after this if it goes well?
Micaela Lara Cadena:
Next steps. Tonight we catch our breath and we get to celebrate across the state because lots of good people won in our primary elections. And then we keep going till November. A lot is on the line right now. So much is at stake for our communities and our shared futures. Big decisions about water and Project Jupiter and all sorts of things that our communities deserve a say in. So tonight we catch our breaths. We rest, we celebrate. And then on to November.
Noah Raess:
And regardless of who wins today, what do you hope to see the candidate do?
Micaela Lara Cadena:
I'm so grateful I get to serve as the vice chair of the House Tax Committee, and I'm also on the water. Agriculture and the skills committee. So here in southern New Mexico, we just had a massive decision coming out of the Supreme Court of the United States. That changes our water futures. Our state now has two years to create a water management plan for the lower Rio Grande Valley, the lower your grand basin. And then we have ten years to permanently retire or basically buy back water rights out of this valley. So for the next two years, that's the center of my reelection and why I'm grateful to have won tonight and hopefully, win again in November. We got to talking about water.
