House Speaker Ben Lujan brought his gavel down on the end of an era Thursday as he closed out his last regular session after nearly 38 years in the Legislature.
"Que viva, que viva," House members chanted as the retiring leader thanked them for their love and friendship. For the past 30 days, the Santa Fe Democrat has guided his final session while battling advanced stage lung cancer.
Lujan told reporters that some of his doctors didn't want him to come to the Capitol this year. But he presided over every House session nonetheless. And he said he had no pain.
Asked about his legacy, Lujan said one of his more memorable actions was shepherding passage of a bill in 2004 to eliminate the state sales tax on food.