By Frost McGahey

On Monday Gabriel Ramos, Republican candidate for legislative District 28, spoke to the League of Republican Women Voters.

He began by saying, "I was a lifelong Democrat like a lot of voters, but I started to see Washington Democrats shift to the left and lose the values I was brought up with. Then I saw Democrats in our own state following the same course to appeal to Santa Fe's most radical arm of the party."

Ramos had been appointed to fill Howie Morales's seat in the legislature in 2019 when Morales became Lieutenant Governor. However, in 2020, he was primaried by Siah Correa Hemphill and lost his race. Hemphill went on to win, but only by a slim margin.*

When asked why he was primaried, Ramos answered, "I wasn't a radical Democrat so the progressive Democrat power players in New Mexico did not want me in office. I didn't believe in taxing citizens at every turn. I didn't believe in abortion up to the time of birth. I didn't believe in taking away personal rights or killing jobs just to look good politically. So the top brass of the party replaced me with someone they could control.

People ask me why I'm running for an unpaid positon in a different party. I tell them I'm doing it as a Republican because I want to restore jobs that have been crushed under the radical progressive leadership. I want to fight to stop the high taxation that has drained families's bank accounts. I want to stand up for families and make sure parents can make health and education decisions for their children."

One of the attendees remarked, "I remember a Facebook posting in which Governor Grisham bragged that she was able to eliminate moderate Democrats by the use of Absentee ballots. I think she had to do that so the legislature would vote to approve legalization of marijuana."

Ramos went on to discuss his background. He'd joined the New Mexico National Guard at 17, graduated from WNMU, became the Grant County Clerk at 25, and was a Grant County Commissioner.

"I expected the rest of my political life to be as a Democrat, but that was not to be. The party left me and now I'm proud to be a Republican. I still have good friends who are Democrats such as Randy Hernandez as well as Connie Holguin. I don't ask anyone to change parties. I just ask that they vote for the person who best represents them, and that they know what the person stands for."

One woman pointed out that electing Ramos was doubly important. First, another Republican in the legislature would fight against the Progressives. But secondly if Chris Ponce wins and vacates his county commissioner seat, the governor could appoint a Progressive to fill his vacancy. "I saw on Facebook that the Progressives want to take over Grant County and raise our taxes."

*Siah Correa Hemphill 11,599 votes vs James "Jimbo" Williams 11,213, a difference of 386 votes.