US Democrats press to avoid upset in New Mexico special election

Police reform, immigration are top issues in hard-fought campaign where neither Democrats nor Republicans are confident.

Democrats are nervous and Republicans in the United States are hopeful as voting concludes on Tuesday in a special election in New Mexico for the US House of Representatives. Four candidates are competing in Deb Haaland’s former district which includes most of the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico’s largest. Haaland was named Interior Secretary by President Joe Biden, creating the opening. The district is heavily Democratic and voted for President Biden over former President Donald Trump, a Republican, by a 23-percentage-point margin. The Democratic candidate, state Representative Melanie Stansbury, is favoured.