The Las Cruces municipal election marked a shift in the Las Cruces political climate . Significant amounts of money were spent by groups from outside the city.
It took the form of persistent robo calls and hard hitting mailers attacking candidates. Most of it was aimed at discrediting Mayor Ken Miyagishima who won re-election.
“I am glad that the residents believed in me and didn’t believe all that information that was being floated out there” Miyagishima said.
Miyagishima says they were the most aggressive attacks he has seen in any recent Las Cruces election.
A lot of political material was paid for by organizations outside of Las Cruces, some even out of the state.
Yvonne Magdalena Flores volunteered for the Mayor Ken Miyagishima campaign and she says she is concerned about the influence outside groups are trying to have on local city policy and elections.
“I think the outsiders want to control the city and that is one way of doing it. You get your puppets, people who are vulnerable, people who aren’t very bright, who really don’t care about the city or care about the people here… It is like selling your soul to the devil!” she said.
GOAL West Pac, a Texas Organization that campaigned against Mayor Miyagishima spent around $22,000 in the first six months of the Las Cruces race.
Just how much money was spent by outside groups and individuals won’t be known until around 30 days after the election, when finalized campaign finance reports must be filed with the city clerk.
