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Hector Balderas

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Hector Balderas
31st Attorney General of New Mexico
In office
January 1, 2015 – January 1, 2023
GovernorSusana Martinez
Michelle Lujan Grisham
Preceded byGary King
Succeeded byRaúl Torrez
25th Auditor of New Mexico
In office
January 1, 2007 – January 1, 2015
GovernorBill Richardson
Susana Martinez
Preceded byDomingo Martinez
Succeeded byTim Keller
Member of the New Mexico House of Representatives
from the 68th district
In office
January 2005 – December 2006
Preceded byBengie Regensberg
Succeeded byThomas Garcia
Personal details
Born
Hector Hugo Balderas Jr.

(1973-08-16) August 16, 1973 (age 51)
Wagon Mound, New Mexico, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseDenise Balderas
Children3
EducationNew Mexico Highlands University (BA)
University of New Mexico (JD)

Hector Hugo Balderas Jr. (born August 16, 1973) is an American lawyer and former prosecutor who served as the attorney general of New Mexico from 2015 to 2023. In 2006, Balderas became the youngest statewide Hispanic elected official in the nation when he won his first race for New Mexico state auditor at the age of 33.[1] Before that Balderas served as a State Representative in the New Mexico Legislature from 2004 to 2006. Balderas also serves as the elected treasurer of the National Association of Latino Elected Officials.[2]

In an article published November 17, 2014, Balderas was identified as one of seven Democratic state executive officials who could gain national prominence by leading the party to a national comeback.[3]

Steve Terrell of The Santa Fe New Mexican wrote on May 16, 2015 that Balderas, who won his attorney-general race, was the only Hispanic on the statewide Democratic ticket in 2014. He was the top vote-getter of all statewide candidates that year, winning 1,565 more votes than Governor Susana Martinez.[4]

Early life and education

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Balderas was raised in Wagon Mound, New Mexico, a village in Mora County, New Mexico. He is the son of a Mexican father and was raised by his single mother. Balderas attended Wagon Mound High School and participated in TRIO Upward Bound, a federally funded college prep program.

While attending the University of New Mexico School of Law, Balderas served as the council chair of the Graduate and Professional Student Association.[5]

Career

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From 2002 to 2003 Balderas served as an assistant district attorney for Bernalillo County. Between 2003 and 2006 he was a special prosecutor for domestic violence cases in the 4th Judicial District of New Mexico.[6]

New Mexico House of Representatives

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Balderas ran for a seat in the New Mexico House of Representatives in 2004, defeating the Democratic incumbent in the primary election and a Republican in the general election.[7][8]

In May 2006, he traveled to Pakistan to support President Bush's war on terror, and discussed foreign policy and United States-Pakistan relations on a top Pakistani talk show.[9]

In his first term, Balderas passed sweeping legislation to strengthen penalties for sexual predators, worked to strengthen drug laws against methamphetamine and date rape drugs, established investment incentives for clean energy and funded virtual education for rural public schools. Balderas also sponsored "truthful interrogations" legislation which gained national recognition as one of the most significant reforms to the criminal justice system. Balderas was nationally recognized alongside then-State Senator Barack Obama of Illinois for passing legislation that requires police to record their in-house interrogations with suspected killers.[citation needed]

In recognition of his legislative accomplishments, Balderas was named Rookie-Leader-of-the-Year by the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce for his work on energy development and Outstanding Rookie by the League of Conservation Voters.

State auditor

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During his first legislative term, he was chosen by the Democratic Party of New Mexico to replace Jeff Armijo on the ballot for state auditor and with a shorter period to campaign, won the election with nearly 55% of the vote.[10] He was re-elected in 2010 and earned the second-highest number of votes of any of New Mexico's Democratic statewide candidates.[11]

U.S. Senate campaign

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Main article: 2012 United States Senate election in New Mexico

Balderas was a candidate for the U.S. Senate seat in 2012 held by retiring Democrat Jeff Bingaman. He lost the Democratic primary to Martin Heinrich.[12]

Attorney general

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Balderas was elected as the attorney general of New Mexico in 2014.[13]

Other positions

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  • Treasurer Board Member, National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO). NALEO is a national nonpartisan organization with a network of more than 6,000 governmental, political, and business leaders who conduct civic projects, training and technical assistance for the Latino community. There are 24 members on the board of directors.

Honors and accolades

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  • Recipient of the 2011 Conservation Voters New Mexico Sunshine Award. Balderas was recognized for his steadfast work as State Auditor in rooting out fraud and corruption, and shining sunlight on the operations of state government. According to CVNM, his hard work has resulted in millions of dollars of savings and the enforcement of key safeguards that protect New Mexico's natural resources.[14]
  • Recipient of the 2010 recipient John F. Kennedy New Frontier Award, which honors young Americans who are changing their community through a commitment to public service. He is the first New Mexican to receive the annual award. The award is presented annually to exceptional young Americans under the age of 40 whose contributions in elective office, community service or advocacy demonstrate the impact and value of public service in the spirit of John F. Kennedy.[15]
  • Recognized by Hispanic Business Magazine in 2007 as one of the nation's 100 most influential Hispanics.[16] Balderas joined 2007 honorees including Eastman Kodak Company CEO and Chairman Antonio M. Perez, former U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez and Hillary Clinton for President Campaign Manager Patti Solis Doyle.
  • New Mexico State Bar Association 2006 Outstanding Young Lawyer Award.
  • In 2010, Hector Balderas was awarded the Liberty and Justice Award by the New Mexico Hispanic Bar Association for his contributions to empowerment for Hispanics in education and the legal profession.[citation needed]

Personal life

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Balderas and his wife Denise have three children. Balderas is a special needs advocate and frequent participant in the New Mexico Special Olympics annual torch run; his daughter Arianna was born with Down syndrome.[citation needed]

Electoral history

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New Mexico House of Representatives 68th District Democratic Primary Election, 2004
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Hector Balderas 2,788 56.06
Democratic Bengie Regensberg (inc.) 1,427 28.69
Democratic Severiano Sisneros Jr. 758 15.24
New Mexico House of Representatives 68th District Election, 2004
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Hector Balderas 6,655 61.76
Republican Roger Gonzales 4,120 38.24
New Mexico Auditor Election, 2006
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Hector Balderas 298,143 54.77
Republican Lorenzo Garcia 246,225 45.23
New Mexico Auditor Election, 2010
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Hector Balderas (inc.) 323,427 55.15
Republican Errol Chavez 263,008 44.85
New Mexico U.S. Senate Democratic Primary Election, 2012
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Martin Heinrich 83,432 58.94
Democratic Hector Balderas 58,128 41.06
New Mexico Attorney General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Hector Balderas 295,008 58.27
Republican Susan Riedel 211,303 41.73
New Mexico Attorney General Election, 2018
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Hector Balderas 427,583 61.08
Republican Michael Hendricks 231,296 33.04

References

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  1. ^ "State Auditor Honored With JFK Award". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved 1 December 2010.
  2. ^ "Hector Balderas, Democrat for State Auditor". The New Mexico Professional Fire Fighters Association.
  3. ^ "These Democrats Could Be The Party's Ticket To A Comeback". Huffington Post. November 17, 2014.
  4. ^ Terrell, Steve. "Hispanic voters are prize for both parties". The Santa Fe New Mexican.
  5. ^ "The UNM Graduate and Professional Student Association". Archived from the original on August 22, 2007.
  6. ^ Baker, Deborah. "Reform System Vs. 'Catch Bad Guy' Approach". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  7. ^ "Our Campaigns - NM State House 68 - D Primary Race - Jun 01, 2004".
  8. ^ "Our Campaigns - NM State House 68 Race - Nov 02, 2004".
  9. ^ Quraishi, Ahmed (May 2006). "Three Young American Politicians in Pakistan". PTV Network. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
  10. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-25. Retrieved 2011-04-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2011-04-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. ^ "Wilson, Heinrich win N.M. Senate primary". UPI. June 6, 2012.
  13. ^ "2 vie to unseat New Mexico's incumbent attorney general". Associated Press. 2018-10-26. Retrieved 2021-06-23.
  14. ^ "State Auditor Hector Balderas Receives "Sunshine Award" from Conservation Voters New Mexico". Democracy for New Mexico. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
  15. ^ "New Frontier Award". John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
  16. ^ "The Hispanic Business 100 Most Influential Hispanics" (PDF). Hispanic Business Magazine. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-03-06. Retrieved April 10, 2011.
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Political offices
Preceded by Auditor of New Mexico
2007–2015 		Succeeded by
Legal offices
Preceded by Attorney General of New Mexico
2015–2023 		Succeeded by
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