“This is the kickoff for 2024, US Congress, second congressional district, Yvette Herrell for Congress!”
That was the announcement former Congresswoman Herrell made April 10 to about 750 people gathered at the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum. The mostly partisan audience gave Herrell a standing ovation in response to her intent to regain the seat she held in 2021-22.
“We’ve got about 16 months, 17 months, to get it right,” Herrell said. “And we will get it right. Together we will take our country back.”
Joining Herrell was U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy.
During the ovation for Herrell, McCarthy could be seen on the stage, snapping photos of the audience with his cell phone.
Soon after, Herrell introduced McCarthy and he came to the podium.
“I had to take a picture from back here, because if this is the announcement, I wonder what election night’s going to look like,” McCarthy said.
“Four years ago, when I became Republican leader in the House, we set our goals,” McCarthy said. “Stop Biden’s agenda, fire Nancy Pelosi, and win the majority back. We achieved all three of those.
“But we fell a little short, 1,350 votes,” McCarthy added, referencing current Congressman Gabe Vasquez’s narrow victory over Herrell in the 2022 election for New Mexico’s District Two.
McCarthy then talked about how, each election cycle, he liked to pick what place he would go for a critical Congressional candidacy announcement.
“And every time I’ve done that, that person has won,” he said. “So, you cannot let me down. This is the first announcement I’ve been to for the next election cycle.”
Outside the museum, about 40 protesters stood along Dripping Springs Road, holding signs with messages such as “No No Yvette,” “Oppose Yvette Herrell, she voted against veterans,” “Abortion is health care,” “Gabe Vasquez for Congress,” and “No MAGA extremists.”
From the podium, Herrell said, “I hear there are some protesters outside. They’re probably getting paid. And that tells me two things. They’re scared. They’re not just scared about me; they’re scared of you. … Together we can make this happen, we can start taking seats back, we can start making America great again, and let’s try making New Mexico great for the first time.”
This also drew a big ovation from the audience.
Opening the event was State Sen. Crystal Diamond, who represents parts of Doña Ana, Luna, Sierra and Hidalgo counties. Though New Mexico’s state Legislature is predominantly Democratic, the Republican Diamond felt positive about the recently completed 2023 session.
“We didn’t just hold the line, we gained some ground,” Diamond said, citing legislation bringing “meaningful reform” to the Children, Youth and Families Department; fire protection legislation led by State Sen. Bill Burt, who was in the audience; revisions to medical malpractice laws; and actions she said fought for small business, such as killing a mandatory paid family medical leave bill, and killing a minimum wage increase.
“You have elected some real fighters,” Diamond said of the Republicans in the state Legislature. “But our greatest setback is we lost CD 2.
“Losing Yvette Herrell was a loss to the entire state, not just CD 2,” Diamond said. “The Democrats didn’t win that election, the Republicans lost it. But we could not have had a better candidate than Yvette Herrell. It’s just that not enough Republicans are voting in New Mexico. We’re working hard to get twice as many Republicans to vote. They’re not going to outfight us. The takeback fight starts today!”
Diamond then introduced Herrell, who began by recognizing a couple of audience members.
“I have to thank two very special people,” said Herrell, who is from Alamogordo. “My Mom and my Dad are here. Thank you, I love you.”
She then pivoted to criticizing her replacement in Washington, D.C.
“Gabe Vasquez has been in office, what? Four or five months?” Herrell asked. “What a disaster.
“We don’t have a seat at the table, we don’t have anybody watching out for our interests.
“He voted no on increasing American energy.
“He also voted against protecting the unborn,” she said. “He voted no on the abortion born-alive act … He doesn’t care about kids either. In fact, he just cast his vote against the parents’ bill of rights.
“We’ve got to work on every single level; county, federal, state, local,” she said. “We’ve got to show up in November next year.
“We only lost the seat by 1,300 votes, that’s not that many,” Herrell said. “But what we must do, must do … We’ve got to get God back in the conversation. We need more God and less government.
“We need to protect our kids, protect our economy, protect our nation. And that’s why today is such a very special day.”
Later, McCarthy compared New Mexico to his home state.
“I happen to be from California,” McCarthy said to scattered boos. “People ask me why do I travel the country? To see all my former constituents. New Mexico is a little like California: a beautiful state with bad leadership.”
McCarthy criticized the recent two-year stretch (2020-2022) when the Democrats controlled the House.
“God has blessed this nation,” McCarthy said. “They have given us the minerals that we can become energy independent. When we become energy independent, our energy costs are lower. If our energy costs are lower, more people are working. America’s stronger, but you know what else? The world is safer.
“In that short amount of time (Democrats) disrupted the world order,” he said. “Now OPEC determines what the price of gas is, not America.”
