New Mexico votes for governor on concerns of crime, abortion

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is seeking a second term in Tuesday’s election on promises to defend access to abortion and sustain social spending as Republican challenger Mark Ronchetti urges new approaches to crime and the economy. New Mexico voters are confronting stark choices at the polls as they fill a long list of statewide elected positions for the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus overwhelmed rural hospitals and sent shockwaves through the economy. The winning candidate for governor in a heavily Hispanic and Native American state will oversee a windfall in state government income amid anxiety about inflation, border enforcement and violent crime in Albuquerque.