The year 2021 began with satisfaction, if not glee, with the inauguration on January 20 of vice president Kamala Harris—a competent woman next in line to the presidency.

Pride in the estimation and elevation of New Mexico women came soon thereafter with President Joe Biden’s appointment of former Congresswoman Deb Haaland, who formerly chaired our state Democratic party, to become the Secretary of Interior. Her appointment points to acknowledgment of the injustices done to Native culture and Native peoples in the name of the United States.

Her tenure is likely to affect generations to come through its focus on murdered women and recovery of bodies of children near boarding schools designed to extinguish Native culture, as well as on restoring rather than selling off national lands.
Replacing Haaland’s congressional seat required an election, which in turn set off other competitions won by female Democrats at the county and state levels: Albuquerque Democrat Melanie Stansbury won Haaland’s seat and joined fellow Democrat Teresa Leger Fernandez in D.C.

Closely thereafter, Stansbury’s seat in the New Mexico legislature was filled by appointment of the Bernalillo County Commission including female commissioners Adrianne Barboa, Charlene Pyskoty, and Debbie O’Malley with African American lawyer Pamelya Herndon. Later, the same commissioners voted to appoint Asian American activist Kay Bounkeua to fill the vacancy left when Representative Sheryl Williams Stapleton resigned.

Bernalillo County female elected leaders include assessor Tanya Giddings, treasurer Nancy Bearce and clerk Linda Stover. Women hold Democratic Party leadership, not only in Bernalillo County led by Flora Lucero, but also statewide, with state party chair Jessica Velasquez and state treasurer Rayellen Smith. All three emphasize transparency and focus on inclusion and accountability.

Our Democratic female statewide leadership–Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Public Lands Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richards, and Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver—met political controversies and divides with dignity, popular approval, and effectiveness by hewing to scientific COVID measures, legalization of marijuana, beginning to remediate the environmental damage caused by years of Trump environmental decisions, and administration of an election whose fairness was affirmed against challenges by GOP leaders.

In especially newsworthy municipal politics, New Mexico saw the election of the first all-female city council in Las Cruces. In addition, Albuquerque elected Tammy Fiebelkorn to the Albuquerque City Council, replacing Democrat Diane Gibson, who did not seek re-election. She joins female Democratic councilor Klarissa Pena.

At the state level, a healthy number of Democratic female legislators continued to represent Bernalillo County—among them Senators Katy Duhigg, Linda Lopez, Brenda McKenna, Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, and Mimi Stewart; as well as Representatives Debbie Armstrong, Brittney Barreras, Karen Bash, Kay Bounkeua, Gail Chasey, Meredith Dixon, Natalie Figueroa, Joy Garratt, Pamelya Herndon, Dayan “Day” Hochman-Vigil, Georgene Louis, Marian Matthews, Patricia Roybal Caballero, Debbie Sariñana, Liz Thomson, and Christine Trujillo. All in all, women could call that progress!