Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., is poised to head into the November election without an official Republican challenger on the ballot after the only GOP candidate seeking the nomination failed to gather enough signatures to qualify.
Christopher Vanden Heuvel, the lone Republican hopeful in the U.S. Senate race, did not secure the required signatures to appear on the party’s primary ballot, according to reporting from the Albuquerque Journal. The development marks a rare moment in New Mexico politics, as the outlet noted the state’s Senate race has never featured only one major party on the ballot.
Three other candidates in separate races also fell short of signature requirements. Those include Democratic congressional candidate Thomas Wakely, Republican gubernatorial hopeful Belinda Robertson, and Republican congressional candidate Carlton Pennington.
Luján’s campaign downplayed the significance of the GOP’s ballot troubles.
“He’ll continue earning their support on the campaign trail while doing the job they elected him to do by lowering costs and delivering results for New Mexico,” a spokesperson for Luján told the local publication. “That commitment does not change based on who else is [on] the ballot.”
Luján, who is seeking his second term in the Senate, could still face a primary challenge from self-described democratic socialist Matt Dodson, who is also pursuing the Democratic nomination.
The New Mexico Republican Party acknowledged the setback but emphasized that party leaders had worked to assist candidates who were struggling to meet the signature threshold.
“In the case of the U.S. Senate race, we were proactive well before declaration day, engaging in conversations to evaluate the landscape and explore possible remedies ahead of the filing deadline,” said New Mexico Republican Party Chairwoman Amy Barela in a statement Thursday.
“Our approach was deliberate and strategic,” Barela added, stressing the importance of “viability, coordination, and competitiveness in every race.” She said the party made repeated outreach efforts and offered assistance to candidates who were short on signatures.
Barela also noted that Vanden Heuvel has been in contact with the Secretary of State’s Office and believes he may have received information that differs from the New Mexico Election Handbook. She said that if state officials ultimately confirm his qualification, the party would “fully support his placement on the ballot and stand firmly behind his candidacy moving forward.”
The absence of a Republican candidate has drawn frustration from some conservatives in the state. GOP activist Scott Presler took to X to criticize the situation.
“Did you know that Republicans won’t have ANY New Mexico Senate candidate for the federal election this November?” Presler wrote. “Democrat Senator Lujan (NM) will walk into re-election [because] Republicans don’t have a candidate. He’s AGAINST the SAVE America Act, by the way.”
Luján won his Senate seat in 2020, defeating Republican Mark Ronchetti with just under 52% of the vote. Ronchetti received nearly 46%. Before serving in the Senate, Luján represented New Mexico in the House from 2009 to 2021, including time as assistant House speaker and four years leading the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
New Mexico has additional high-profile races on the horizon, including the contest to succeed Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. In 2024, Sen. Martin Heinrich won re-election by roughly 10 percentage points. That same year, President Donald Trump captured nearly 46% of the vote in the state after holding a rally there days before the election.
Nationally, Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate and face competitive battles in states such as Maine, Georgia, Michigan, and North Carolina, according to the Cook Political Report.
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