On September 3, the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled 4-1 that Democrats could not replace their withdrawn candidate in House District 23 — because the vacancy happened 78 days before the election, and state law requires at least 90. Republican Alan Martinez will now run unopposed.
That's not the only seat they lost. There are two.
Here's how the whole thing unraveled, in House District 23, Democratic nominee Elise Falanga Taylor withdrew on August 17 — 78 days before the November 3 general election. Democrats tried to slide in replacement candidate Matthew Wayne Herman through Sandoval County Clerk Anne Brady-Romero. But New Mexico's Section 1-8-8 is specific: a post-primary vacancy has to occur at least 90 days before the election, and the replacement nominee must be filed at least 70 days out. August 5 was the last eligible date for a vacancy to qualify. Falanga Taylor missed it by twelve days.
The state Supreme Court agreed. Four justices said the statute means what it says. One dissented. Herman's name stays off the ballot, and Rep. Alan Martinez runs unopposed for his seat.
Meanwhile, over in House District 4, the same playbook produced the same result. Democratic incumbent Joseph Hernandez — who won the seat in 2024 — withdrew on August 25, just 70 days before the election. Democrats attempted to replace him with former state Rep. Anthony Allison, filing through San Juan County Clerk Alyssa Kuhn. District Judge James A. Noel held a show-cause hearing on September 2 and blocked the substitution on the same statutory grounds. Republican candidate Heather Scott Ellison, who has spent 35 years in service to children and families, now runs unopposed.
Two districts. Two withdrawals. Two attempted swaps. Two court rulings saying no.
Republican state Rep. Stefani Lord summed it up: "ONE HOUSE SEAT FLIPS BEFORE ELECTION DAY." That was about District 4, where Ellison picks up what had been a Democratic seat without a single ballot being cast in the general. Her campaign has described its vision as "grounded in accountability and respect" — which, given the circumstances, is more restraint than most people would show.
The New Mexico Secretary of State published the election calendar with these deadlines clearly marked. Section 1-8-8 isn't buried in some obscure subsection — it's the statute that governs exactly this scenario. Democrats in both districts withdrew their candidates after the deadline had passed, then tried to file replacements anyway. Both county clerks processed the filings. Both courts said the law doesn't work that way.
Ballot certification was due September 4 — the day after the Supreme Court ruling. Democrats didn't just miss the deadline. They missed it, tried to get around it, got hauled into court, and lost on the merits in back-to-back rulings.
New Mexico isn't exactly ruby-red territory. These are state house seats in a state where Democrats control the legislature. Picking up even one of them unopposed would be notable. Picking up one and locking down another — both because the opposing party couldn't follow its own state's election calendar — is the kind of thing that happens when an operation is falling apart at the precinct level.