WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.139 If you are someone who loves taking a massive 00:00:04.139 --> 00:00:06.059 pile of information, just sort of shaking it 00:00:06.059 --> 00:00:08.439 out and finding that one perfect mind -blowing 00:00:08.439 --> 00:00:10.279 narrative to share at your next dinner party, 00:00:10.480 --> 00:00:12.900 you are in exactly the right place. Oh, absolutely. 00:00:13.310 --> 00:00:16.390 Today, we have a really special deep dive prepared 00:00:16.390 --> 00:00:19.969 just for you. We are looking at a document that, 00:00:19.989 --> 00:00:22.589 you know, on the surface might not sound like 00:00:22.589 --> 00:00:24.890 a thriller. Right. It sounds a bit academic at 00:00:24.890 --> 00:00:27.329 first glance. Yeah, exactly. It is essentially 00:00:27.329 --> 00:00:29.989 a comprehensive list detailing the United States 00:00:29.989 --> 00:00:32.009 senators from New Mexico over the last century 00:00:32.009 --> 00:00:33.950 or so. And I know what you might be thinking. 00:00:34.170 --> 00:00:36.850 A giant list of politicians. Right. A registry 00:00:36.850 --> 00:00:40.109 of names, dates, political parties, congressional 00:00:40.109 --> 00:00:43.000 classes. It usually looks like a drive. spreadsheet 00:00:43.000 --> 00:00:45.740 it seems like a kind of thing you might cram 00:00:45.740 --> 00:00:47.500 into your brain for a high school history test 00:00:47.500 --> 00:00:50.140 and then immediately flush out but okay let's 00:00:50.140 --> 00:00:53.460 unpack this because hiding right there in the 00:00:53.460 --> 00:00:56.219 rows and columns of this timeline is an incredible 00:00:56.219 --> 00:00:59.399 story of evolution it really is we are talking 00:00:59.399 --> 00:01:02.969 about intense, hidden political drama, a completely 00:01:02.969 --> 00:01:06.750 bizarre game of senatorial musical chairs, and 00:01:06.750 --> 00:01:09.329 a staggering amount of early turnover that you 00:01:09.329 --> 00:01:11.670 simply would not expect from the highest legislative 00:01:11.670 --> 00:01:14.269 body in the country. It really is a phenomenal 00:01:14.269 --> 00:01:16.909 data set to analyze when you look past the raw 00:01:16.909 --> 00:01:20.269 text. This isn't just a static timeline or a 00:01:20.269 --> 00:01:23.129 simple registry of politicians who went to Washington. 00:01:23.349 --> 00:01:26.650 No, not at all. It is actually the living, breathing 00:01:26.650 --> 00:01:30.129 story. of a state trying to find its political 00:01:30.129 --> 00:01:33.189 footing over the course of a century. When you 00:01:33.189 --> 00:01:35.849 take a magnifying glass to the specific dates, 00:01:35.909 --> 00:01:38.430 the sudden gaps, and the highly unusual reasons 00:01:38.430 --> 00:01:41.030 these individuals left office, you start to see 00:01:41.030 --> 00:01:43.349 the severe growing pains of a brand new state. 00:01:43.549 --> 00:01:45.769 Yeah, the growing pains are so obvious. You see 00:01:45.769 --> 00:01:48.030 the massive shift in its political identity over 00:01:48.030 --> 00:01:50.469 the decades, and you witness the very mechanics 00:01:50.469 --> 00:01:52.750 of American democracy playing out, sometimes 00:01:52.750 --> 00:01:55.420 quite clumsily, in real time. We're going to 00:01:55.420 --> 00:01:57.159 guide you through exactly what those numbers 00:01:57.159 --> 00:01:59.260 and dates mean for the people who actually lived 00:01:59.260 --> 00:02:01.420 through them. And to really understand those 00:02:01.420 --> 00:02:03.379 growing pains, we have to start right at the 00:02:03.379 --> 00:02:05.879 very beginning of the timeline because the bumpiness 00:02:05.879 --> 00:02:08.699 of this road is incredibly obvious from day one. 00:02:08.819 --> 00:02:10.919 Oh, absolutely. Day one is a mess. There is a 00:02:10.919 --> 00:02:13.469 fascinating quirk. Right at the top of the timeline 00:02:13.469 --> 00:02:16.129 regarding the very inception of the state. So 00:02:16.129 --> 00:02:18.009 New Mexico was officially admitted to the union 00:02:18.009 --> 00:02:21.090 and became a state on January 6, 1912. Right. 00:02:21.189 --> 00:02:23.930 That is obviously a massive historic day for 00:02:23.930 --> 00:02:26.310 the people living there. But if you track the 00:02:26.310 --> 00:02:28.689 timeline for their Senate representation, the 00:02:28.689 --> 00:02:32.729 seats sit completely vacant until March 27, 1912. 00:02:32.909 --> 00:02:35.289 What's fascinating here is that two and a half 00:02:35.289 --> 00:02:38.310 month gap. You have a brand new state finally 00:02:38.310 --> 00:02:40.770 admitted to the union after a long and complicated 00:02:40.770 --> 00:02:44.789 territorial period. And yet for its first 80 00:02:44.789 --> 00:02:47.969 days of official statehood. 80 days. Exactly. 00:02:48.009 --> 00:02:50.650 80 days where it has absolutely zero representation 00:02:50.650 --> 00:02:52.729 in the United States Senate. It highlights a 00:02:52.729 --> 00:02:55.409 really unique administrative lag that we don't 00:02:55.409 --> 00:02:56.969 often think about when states join the union. 00:02:57.090 --> 00:02:59.830 We just assume it's instant. Right. But the state 00:02:59.830 --> 00:03:02.389 had to literally build its political infrastructure 00:03:02.389 --> 00:03:06.069 and hold its elections after the fact. So during 00:03:06.069 --> 00:03:08.650 those crucial first few months when the federal 00:03:08.650 --> 00:03:10.689 government is passing laws that will affect this 00:03:10.689 --> 00:03:13.629 new state, New Mexico is totally voiceless in 00:03:13.629 --> 00:03:15.840 Washington. Which brings up a technical detail 00:03:15.840 --> 00:03:18.360 that appears right there in the empty columns 00:03:18.360 --> 00:03:22.659 of 1912. The timeline explicitly divides the 00:03:22.659 --> 00:03:25.280 empty seats into class one and class two. Yes. 00:03:25.599 --> 00:03:28.400 Since this concept dictates the entire rhythm 00:03:28.400 --> 00:03:31.080 of the timeline we are about to explore, we should 00:03:31.080 --> 00:03:33.180 probably establish what that actually means for 00:03:33.180 --> 00:03:35.460 the voters. This raises an important question. 00:03:35.639 --> 00:03:38.539 What exactly are these senatorial classes and 00:03:38.539 --> 00:03:40.860 why are they assigned immediately upon statehood? 00:03:41.610 --> 00:03:43.930 The U .S. Senate is deliberately divided into 00:03:43.930 --> 00:03:46.150 three separate classes so that only about one 00:03:46.150 --> 00:03:48.349 third of the senators across the entire country 00:03:48.349 --> 00:03:50.669 are up for election at any given time. To keep 00:03:50.669 --> 00:03:53.449 things stable. Exactly. It is a system designed 00:03:53.449 --> 00:03:55.629 to ensure long term stability in the chamber, 00:03:55.789 --> 00:03:58.270 preventing a scenario where the entire Senate 00:03:58.270 --> 00:04:00.770 could be voted out and replaced in a single sweeping 00:04:00.770 --> 00:04:02.909 election. That makes sense. So when a new state 00:04:02.909 --> 00:04:05.699 like New Mexico enters the union. They don't 00:04:05.699 --> 00:04:08.819 just get two generic senators. They are specifically 00:04:08.819 --> 00:04:11.199 assigned to two of those three existing classes 00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:13.460 to integrate them into that staggered national 00:04:13.460 --> 00:04:16.259 election cycle. And for New Mexico, they were 00:04:16.259 --> 00:04:18.319 assigned class one and class two. It's Isley. 00:04:18.379 --> 00:04:20.639 So they had to be slotted into the existing federal 00:04:20.639 --> 00:04:23.500 machinery. So finally, March 27 rolls around. 00:04:23.660 --> 00:04:26.199 The administrative lag is over and New Mexico 00:04:26.199 --> 00:04:28.560 gets its very first congressional delegation. 00:04:28.899 --> 00:04:31.259 The seats are filled. Right. In the class one 00:04:31.259 --> 00:04:33.360 seat, you have Thomas B. Cajun. And in the class 00:04:33.360 --> 00:04:36.199 two seat, you have Albert B. Fall. Both of these 00:04:36.199 --> 00:04:38.819 men are Republicans. You would think that finally 00:04:38.819 --> 00:04:41.279 getting two bodies into those seats would solve 00:04:41.279 --> 00:04:44.379 the early chaos. But the timeline. shows, things 00:04:44.379 --> 00:04:47.420 actually get much weirder. Oh, get so much weirder. 00:04:47.540 --> 00:04:50.360 Let's trace the tenure of Albert B. Fall. He 00:04:50.360 --> 00:04:53.220 is elected in 1912, but his entry comes with 00:04:53.220 --> 00:04:55.800 a wild footnote. The state legislature actually 00:04:55.800 --> 00:04:58.379 invalidated his election. Just threw it out. 00:04:58.459 --> 00:05:01.459 Threw it out. He was literally forced to be reelected 00:05:01.459 --> 00:05:04.040 in 1913 just to continue into the next term. 00:05:04.160 --> 00:05:07.459 The logistical nightmare of that situation is 00:05:07.459 --> 00:05:11.339 staggering. It is a remarkable detail that shows 00:05:11.339 --> 00:05:13.899 just how turbulent the early political environment 00:05:13.899 --> 00:05:17.300 was in Santa Fe. Clearly. The rules, the procedures 00:05:17.300 --> 00:05:19.740 and the power dynamics between the local legislature 00:05:19.740 --> 00:05:22.040 and the federal representatives were still being 00:05:22.040 --> 00:05:24.779 actively fought over. Having a state legislature 00:05:24.779 --> 00:05:28.060 invalidate the election of its own newly minted 00:05:28.060 --> 00:05:31.420 U .S. senator points to some serious behind the 00:05:31.420 --> 00:05:33.819 scenes political infighting. It's wild to think 00:05:33.819 --> 00:05:36.399 about. And that turbulence didn't stop once he 00:05:36.399 --> 00:05:38.850 secured his reelection. If you trace Albert B. 00:05:38.889 --> 00:05:41.290 Fall's timeline further down the chart, you see 00:05:41.290 --> 00:05:42.970 that he doesn't even finish his tenure in the 00:05:42.970 --> 00:05:44.750 Senate. He doesn't even come close. He manages 00:05:44.750 --> 00:05:48.029 to get reelected in 1918, seemingly stabilizing 00:05:48.029 --> 00:05:51.009 his position. But then he abruptly resigns in 00:05:51.009 --> 00:05:53.810 March of 1921. Just walks away. Just walks away. 00:05:53.889 --> 00:05:55.930 And the reason for his resignation is a crucial 00:05:55.930 --> 00:05:58.810 data point here. He leaves to become the U .S. 00:05:58.850 --> 00:06:01.129 Secretary of the Interior. Which establishes 00:06:01.129 --> 00:06:03.310 a very interesting precedent right out of the 00:06:03.310 --> 00:06:05.870 gate for New Mexico's political culture. Yeah. 00:06:05.930 --> 00:06:08.750 In this early era. The Senate seat wasn't necessarily 00:06:08.750 --> 00:06:11.949 viewed as the ultimate final destination for 00:06:11.949 --> 00:06:14.970 a politician. Like it is today. Right. It was 00:06:14.970 --> 00:06:16.990 often treated as a stepping stone to other federal 00:06:16.990 --> 00:06:19.750 appointments. Fall walking away from an elected 00:06:19.750 --> 00:06:21.970 position to join the president's cabinet was 00:06:21.970 --> 00:06:24.910 just the first of several early voluntary departures 00:06:24.910 --> 00:06:27.149 we're going to see. It signals to the voters 00:06:27.149 --> 00:06:29.949 that their representation in Washington is highly 00:06:29.949 --> 00:06:32.759 fluid. Highly fluid is almost an understatement 00:06:32.759 --> 00:06:35.459 when we move into the 1920s and 30s. Here's where 00:06:35.459 --> 00:06:38.339 it gets really interesting. Oh, boy. Because 00:06:38.339 --> 00:06:41.459 if the 1910s were defined by administrative delays 00:06:41.459 --> 00:06:44.420 and invalidated elections, the next two decades 00:06:44.420 --> 00:06:48.000 were defined by pure, unadulterated chaos. Chaos 00:06:48.000 --> 00:06:50.459 is the right word. The sheer number of vacancies, 00:06:50.459 --> 00:06:53.180 temporary appointments, sudden deaths and resignations 00:06:53.180 --> 00:06:55.620 turns the Senate representation of New Mexico 00:06:55.620 --> 00:06:58.819 into a constantly revolving door. I want to carefully 00:06:58.819 --> 00:07:01.220 walk you through the absolute anomaly of the 00:07:01.220 --> 00:07:03.860 class one seat in the late 1920s. This is my 00:07:03.860 --> 00:07:05.699 favorite part of the theater. It is essentially 00:07:05.699 --> 00:07:08.560 a master class in political musical chairs. It 00:07:08.560 --> 00:07:10.939 is a timeline so convoluted you almost need to 00:07:10.939 --> 00:07:13.560 draw a map to follow it. The sequence of events 00:07:13.560 --> 00:07:16.839 in that specific class one seat over a two year 00:07:16.839 --> 00:07:19.240 period is one of the most volatile stretches 00:07:19.240 --> 00:07:21.579 of representation you will find in congressional 00:07:21.579 --> 00:07:23.889 history. Let's break it down step by step for 00:07:23.889 --> 00:07:25.829 the listener. You have a Democrat named Andreas 00:07:25.829 --> 00:07:28.670 A. Jones. He brings a brief moment of stability, 00:07:28.970 --> 00:07:31.790 having been elected back in 1916 and then successfully 00:07:31.790 --> 00:07:34.769 reelected in 1922. Right. He was doing well. 00:07:34.910 --> 00:07:38.189 But then the instability strikes. He dies in 00:07:38.189 --> 00:07:41.790 office on December 20th, 1927. So suddenly the 00:07:41.790 --> 00:07:44.730 seat is vacant again. Just nine days later, on 00:07:44.730 --> 00:07:47.529 December 29, a Republican named Bronson M. Cutting 00:07:47.529 --> 00:07:50.089 is appointed to continue the term. But he doesn't 00:07:50.089 --> 00:07:52.600 stay long. No. Cutting only hold on to the seat 00:07:52.600 --> 00:07:55.259 until December of 1928 because another Republican, 00:07:55.519 --> 00:07:58.040 Octaviano Larrazolo, is officially elected to 00:07:58.040 --> 00:08:00.139 finish out the remaining months of Jones's original 00:08:00.139 --> 00:08:02.480 term. And this is where the timeline compresses 00:08:02.480 --> 00:08:04.879 dramatically. Larrazolo takes office on December 00:08:04.879 --> 00:08:08.839 7th, 1928, but he only serves until March 3rd, 00:08:08.839 --> 00:08:11.240 1929. Less than three months. Less than three 00:08:11.240 --> 00:08:13.899 months. The historical record notes that he retired 00:08:13.899 --> 00:08:16.339 due to illness, making his tenure incredibly 00:08:16.339 --> 00:08:18.500 brief, even by the chaotic standards of early 00:08:18.500 --> 00:08:21.199 New Mexico politics. Which leaves the seat open 00:08:21.199 --> 00:08:23.120 for the brand new term starting the very next 00:08:23.120 --> 00:08:27.579 day, March 4th, 1929. And who takes over? Bronson 00:08:27.579 --> 00:08:29.980 M. Cutting. Bronson M. Cutting. He comes right 00:08:29.980 --> 00:08:32.879 back like a boomerang, having won the 1928 general 00:08:32.879 --> 00:08:35.279 election for the full term. Let's just pause 00:08:35.279 --> 00:08:36.860 and put you in the shoes of an average voter 00:08:36.860 --> 00:08:38.899 during that two -year span. It would be so confusing. 00:08:39.200 --> 00:08:43.899 In 1927, your senator is Andreas A. Jones. By 00:08:43.899 --> 00:08:47.559 early 1928, it's Bronson M. Cutting. By late 00:08:47.559 --> 00:08:50.960 1928, it's Octaviano Larrazolo. And by early 00:08:50.960 --> 00:08:53.779 1929, you are right back to Bronson M. Cutting. 00:08:54.000 --> 00:08:56.519 Keeping track of who is actually speaking for 00:08:56.519 --> 00:08:58.539 you in Washington, D .C. would have been a full 00:08:58.539 --> 00:09:01.200 -time job. It creates a massive disconnect between 00:09:01.200 --> 00:09:03.340 the electorate and the federal government. And 00:09:03.340 --> 00:09:05.139 if you look closely at what happens next in the 00:09:05.139 --> 00:09:07.480 timeline, you spot a really striking pattern 00:09:07.480 --> 00:09:09.639 regarding why these senators were leaving. Yeah, 00:09:09.700 --> 00:09:11.639 this part is fascinating. We've already seen 00:09:11.639 --> 00:09:13.980 Albert B. Fall voluntarily leave the Senate for 00:09:13.980 --> 00:09:16.720 a cabinet position. But let's look at how Bronson 00:09:16.720 --> 00:09:18.779 M. Cutting's second stint in the Senate ultimately 00:09:18.779 --> 00:09:22.200 ends. He is reelected in 1930, seemingly securing 00:09:22.200 --> 00:09:26.440 his position. But then, on May 6, 1935, he resigns. 00:09:26.480 --> 00:09:29.519 And his reason. To become a judge of the U .S. 00:09:29.519 --> 00:09:31.919 Court of Appeals. Exactly. And he wasn't the 00:09:31.919 --> 00:09:35.000 only one making that exact career move. If you 00:09:35.000 --> 00:09:37.320 look over at the class two seat around the exact 00:09:37.320 --> 00:09:40.159 same time, you see an identical scenario play 00:09:40.159 --> 00:09:42.320 out. A perfect parallel. You have a Democrat 00:09:42.320 --> 00:09:45.940 named Sam G. Bratton. He was elected in 1924, 00:09:46.100 --> 00:09:49.080 successfully navigating the campaign trail. And 00:09:49.080 --> 00:09:52.080 what does he do? He resigns on June 24th, 1933. 00:09:53.259 --> 00:09:55.860 His reason is exactly the same as Cutting's. 00:09:55.960 --> 00:09:57.960 He leaves to become a judge of the U .S. Court 00:09:57.960 --> 00:10:01.399 of Appeals. The parallelism there is deeply revealing. 00:10:01.600 --> 00:10:04.720 You have politicians participating in these grueling, 00:10:04.720 --> 00:10:07.159 high -stakes statewide elections, convincing 00:10:07.159 --> 00:10:09.259 the population to send them all the way to Washington, 00:10:09.480 --> 00:10:12.539 D .C., to represent a relatively new state. It's 00:10:12.539 --> 00:10:15.120 a lot of work. It is. And yet multiple senators 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:17.440 are willingly trading that hard -won elected 00:10:17.440 --> 00:10:20.179 office for lifetime judicial appointments. They 00:10:20.179 --> 00:10:22.440 are systematically fleeing the legislative branch 00:10:22.440 --> 00:10:24.320 for the courts. Fleeing is a great way to put 00:10:24.320 --> 00:10:26.940 it. It paints a picture of a completely different 00:10:26.940 --> 00:10:29.700 political culture, where a seat on the appellate 00:10:29.700 --> 00:10:32.820 court was viewed as a more desirable or perhaps 00:10:32.820 --> 00:10:35.600 more influential post than serving in the United 00:10:35.600 --> 00:10:38.940 States Senate. It is entirely alien to how we 00:10:38.940 --> 00:10:41.889 view the Senate today. Today, people spend hundreds 00:10:41.889 --> 00:10:44.210 of millions of dollars and dedicate their entire 00:10:44.210 --> 00:10:46.950 lives just to get one of those hundred seats. 00:10:47.029 --> 00:10:48.850 Right. Back then they were treating it like a 00:10:48.850 --> 00:10:51.700 waiting room for a judgeship. If we connect this 00:10:51.700 --> 00:10:54.120 to the bigger picture, you can clearly divide 00:10:54.120 --> 00:10:57.220 the entire history of New Mexico's Senate representation 00:10:57.220 --> 00:11:00.799 into two distinctly different eras. You have 00:11:00.799 --> 00:11:03.240 this early period of intense volatility that 00:11:03.240 --> 00:11:05.200 we've been discussing, the administrative gaps, 00:11:05.419 --> 00:11:08.320 the invalidated elections, the three -month tenures, 00:11:08.480 --> 00:11:10.879 and the constant resignations for cabinet and 00:11:10.879 --> 00:11:12.980 judicial posts. The revolving door. The revolving 00:11:12.980 --> 00:11:16.320 door, exactly. But as we move out of the 1930s 00:11:16.320 --> 00:11:18.820 and into the mid to late 20th century, the timeline 00:11:18.820 --> 00:11:21.679 shows a mass... structural shift. The revolving 00:11:21.679 --> 00:11:24.279 door completely stops. It really does. New Mexico 00:11:24.279 --> 00:11:26.899 transitions from an era of transient politicians 00:11:26.899 --> 00:11:30.779 into an era defined by absolute political titans 00:11:30.779 --> 00:11:32.879 who hold their seats for staggering lengths of 00:11:32.879 --> 00:11:36.519 time. Stability replaces chaos as the defining 00:11:36.519 --> 00:11:39.419 feature of the state's representation. The sheer 00:11:39.419 --> 00:11:42.320 length of these later 10 years is mind -boggling, 00:11:42.340 --> 00:11:44.440 especially when contrasted with guys who were 00:11:44.440 --> 00:11:47.159 serving for 90 days. It's night and day. Let's 00:11:47.159 --> 00:11:50.159 dive into the timelines of these multi -decade 00:11:50.159 --> 00:11:53.440 titans. Take Denis Chavez, for example. He was 00:11:53.440 --> 00:11:55.320 a Democrat who was actually appointed in May 00:11:55.320 --> 00:11:59.240 1935 to fill the vacancy left when Bronson M. 00:11:59.259 --> 00:12:01.460 Cutting resigned to become a judge. Right. He 00:12:01.460 --> 00:12:03.879 steps to that gap. Chavez goes on to be elected 00:12:03.879 --> 00:12:06.820 to finish that term in 1936. But he doesn't stop 00:12:06.820 --> 00:12:11.220 there. He is reelected in 1940, 1946, 1952 and 00:12:11.220 --> 00:12:14.809 1958. He serves continuously until he dies in 00:12:14.809 --> 00:12:18.190 office in November 1962. We are talking about 00:12:18.190 --> 00:12:20.750 over 27 years in the United States Senate. That 00:12:20.750 --> 00:12:23.149 kind of longevity fundamentally changes a state's 00:12:23.149 --> 00:12:24.769 relationship with the federal government. And 00:12:24.769 --> 00:12:26.389 Chavez wasn't an isolated case. Look at Clinton 00:12:26.389 --> 00:12:28.190 Anderson, another Democrat. Well, yeah, his numbers 00:12:28.190 --> 00:12:31.299 are huge. He served a massive, uninterrupted 00:12:31.299 --> 00:12:35.080 stretch from January 1949 all the way to January 00:12:35.080 --> 00:12:39.019 1973. That is 24 years of continuous representation. 00:12:39.659 --> 00:12:42.480 And jumping forward slightly, you have Jeff Bingaman, 00:12:42.620 --> 00:12:45.139 also a Democrat, who held his seat from January 00:12:45.139 --> 00:12:49.259 1983 to January 2013. A clean 30 years. A clean 00:12:49.259 --> 00:12:52.379 30 years in office. Those numbers are huge, but 00:12:52.379 --> 00:12:54.929 incredibly... 30 years doesn't even get you the 00:12:54.929 --> 00:12:57.570 top spot on this list. Not even close. The ultimate 00:12:57.570 --> 00:12:59.490 record holder for the state of New Mexico is 00:12:59.490 --> 00:13:02.470 a Republican named Pete Domenici. He was elected 00:13:02.470 --> 00:13:04.570 to the class two seat and served from January 00:13:04.570 --> 00:13:09.070 3, 1973, all the way to January 3, 2009. 36 years. 00:13:09.330 --> 00:13:11.769 That is 36 straight years in the United States 00:13:11.769 --> 00:13:14.909 Senate. He survived six separate reelection campaigns 00:13:14.909 --> 00:13:17.769 over the course of four different decades. 36 00:13:17.769 --> 00:13:20.750 years of unbroken continuity is a profound political 00:13:20.750 --> 00:13:23.210 achievement. Think about what that practically 00:13:23.210 --> 00:13:25.090 means for a state's influence in Washington. 00:13:25.330 --> 00:13:27.809 It must be massive. It is. When a state evolves 00:13:27.809 --> 00:13:29.769 from having senators who barely unpack their 00:13:29.769 --> 00:13:32.110 bags before resigning to having individuals sitting 00:13:32.110 --> 00:13:34.929 in those same seats for three decades, it completely 00:13:34.929 --> 00:13:37.169 rewrites the power dynamic. Because of seniority. 00:13:37.289 --> 00:13:40.529 Exactly. Seniority. The United States Senate 00:13:40.529 --> 00:13:42.809 operates heavily on the principle of seniority. 00:13:43.070 --> 00:13:45.830 The longer you are there, the more power you 00:13:45.830 --> 00:13:48.759 accumulate. Security dictates prime committee 00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:51.639 assignments. It dictates leadership roles. And 00:13:51.639 --> 00:13:54.340 most importantly, it dictates funding priorities. 00:13:54.620 --> 00:13:57.720 Right. Bringing money back home. Precisely. By 00:13:57.720 --> 00:13:59.639 keeping figures like Pete Domenici and Denis 00:13:59.639 --> 00:14:02.440 Chavez in place for so long, the voters of New 00:14:02.440 --> 00:14:05.360 Mexico effectively consolidated immense institutional 00:14:05.360 --> 00:14:08.500 memory and unparalleled political leverage. A 00:14:08.500 --> 00:14:11.120 sparsely populated state suddenly punches far 00:14:11.120 --> 00:14:13.379 above its weight class because its representatives 00:14:13.379 --> 00:14:16.309 know every lever of power in the building. The 00:14:16.309 --> 00:14:18.730 strategic value of keeping the same person in 00:14:18.730 --> 00:14:20.970 the seat is immense. But of course, the timeline 00:14:20.970 --> 00:14:23.470 also shows us that longevity wasn't just handed 00:14:23.470 --> 00:14:25.789 out to everyone who asked for it. No, the voters 00:14:25.789 --> 00:14:27.669 were still paying attention. Even during this 00:14:27.669 --> 00:14:29.690 age of the titans, there are a few politicians 00:14:29.690 --> 00:14:32.470 who simply couldn't hold on to the role. We see 00:14:32.470 --> 00:14:34.929 a few one -term wonders peppered into the modern 00:14:34.929 --> 00:14:37.750 era. For instance, Republican Edwin L. Meacham. 00:14:37.850 --> 00:14:41.570 He was appointed in November 1962 to fill the 00:14:41.570 --> 00:14:44.370 vacancy when Denis Chavez died. But the voters 00:14:44.370 --> 00:14:51.360 didn't keep him around. Another notable example 00:14:51.360 --> 00:14:53.799 of a shorter tenure in the modern era is Republican 00:14:53.799 --> 00:14:56.700 Harrison Schmidt. He successfully won the seat 00:14:56.700 --> 00:15:01.299 in 1976 and served a full term from 1977 to 1983. 00:15:01.820 --> 00:15:04.440 But then he hits a wall. Right. He lost his re 00:15:04.440 --> 00:15:06.679 -election bid to Jeff Bingaman, who then went 00:15:06.679 --> 00:15:09.419 on to hold the seat for the next 30 years. These 00:15:09.419 --> 00:15:11.539 examples serve as a reminder that while the era 00:15:11.539 --> 00:15:13.940 of musical chairs had ended, the electorate was 00:15:13.940 --> 00:15:17.029 still actively choosing. when to grant that multi 00:15:17.029 --> 00:15:19.230 -decade stability and when to revoke it. That 00:15:19.230 --> 00:15:21.549 act of choosing by the electorate brings us directly 00:15:21.549 --> 00:15:23.970 to how this historical roadmap has shaped the 00:15:23.970 --> 00:15:25.909 modern delegation serving today. The current 00:15:25.909 --> 00:15:28.299 landscape. Yes, the timeline leaves us with a 00:15:28.299 --> 00:15:30.700 very distinct, unified picture of the current 00:15:30.700 --> 00:15:33.600 state of affairs. Right now, the two U .S. senators 00:15:33.600 --> 00:15:36.279 representing New Mexico are both Democrats. You 00:15:36.279 --> 00:15:37.940 have Martin Heinrich, who's been in office since 00:15:37.940 --> 00:15:40.500 January 3, 2013, having successfully defended 00:15:40.500 --> 00:15:43.259 his seat in 2018. And joining him is Ben Ray 00:15:43.259 --> 00:15:45.940 Lujan, who was elected in 2020 and officially 00:15:45.940 --> 00:15:49.759 took office on January 3, 2021. It is a firmly 00:15:49.759 --> 00:15:51.960 established partisan alignment in the Senate. 00:15:52.059 --> 00:15:54.500 And the breakdown of the state's representation. 00:15:55.240 --> 00:15:57.600 goes even further. The current alignment extends 00:15:57.600 --> 00:16:00.120 right across the Capitol building to the House 00:16:00.120 --> 00:16:02.019 of Representatives as well. Yeah, look at the 00:16:02.019 --> 00:16:04.460 House delegation. New Mexico's current House 00:16:04.460 --> 00:16:07.139 delegation consists of Melanie Stansbury, Gabe 00:16:07.139 --> 00:16:10.200 Vasquez, and Teresa Elijah Fernandez. Every single 00:16:10.200 --> 00:16:12.820 one of them is a Democrat. It represents a complete 00:16:12.820 --> 00:16:15.700 blue wave for the state's current federal representation 00:16:15.700 --> 00:16:18.789 in Washington. It's a stark contrast to the days 00:16:18.789 --> 00:16:20.970 of Republicans and Democrats constantly trading 00:16:20.970 --> 00:16:23.809 seats back in the 1920s. And to bring this full 00:16:23.809 --> 00:16:25.669 circle back to the mechanics of the Senate that 00:16:25.669 --> 00:16:27.769 we discussed earlier, we can look at exactly 00:16:27.769 --> 00:16:30.049 when these modern senators will face the voters 00:16:30.049 --> 00:16:32.350 again based on their assigned classes. It's all 00:16:32.350 --> 00:16:34.730 mapped out. The timeline maps out the modern 00:16:34.730 --> 00:16:38.049 electoral cycles perfectly. Precisely. Because 00:16:38.049 --> 00:16:40.009 we know that Martin Heinrich occupies the class 00:16:40.009 --> 00:16:42.590 one seat, we can trace that specific electoral 00:16:42.590 --> 00:16:45.720 cycle through modern history. The Class I cycle 00:16:45.720 --> 00:16:49.259 in New Mexico was contested in 2006, 2012, 2018, 00:16:49.480 --> 00:16:52.840 and most recently in 2024. And since they serve 00:16:52.840 --> 00:16:55.269 six -year terms. Right. That means Heinrich's 00:16:55.269 --> 00:16:57.669 specific seat will not be up for a vote again 00:16:57.669 --> 00:17:00.389 until the year 2030. And on the flip side, you 00:17:00.389 --> 00:17:02.610 have the class two seat currently held by Ben 00:17:02.610 --> 00:17:05.430 Ray Lujan. Tracing that cycle, we see it was 00:17:05.430 --> 00:17:09.750 contested in 2002, 2008, 2014 and 2020. Following 00:17:09.750 --> 00:17:11.769 the pattern. That means the class two seat is 00:17:11.769 --> 00:17:14.009 the one slated to be determined in the upcoming 00:17:14.009 --> 00:17:17.400 2026 election. Seeing those staggered cycles 00:17:17.400 --> 00:17:19.619 mapped out on the timeline gives you a much more 00:17:19.619 --> 00:17:21.839 practical grasp of how congressional elections 00:17:21.839 --> 00:17:24.240 actually function. It really does. It shows why 00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:26.680 a state never replaces its entire Senate delegation 00:17:26.680 --> 00:17:29.539 on the exact same election day. It is the architectural 00:17:29.539 --> 00:17:31.660 design of the Senate working exactly as intended, 00:17:31.900 --> 00:17:34.319 providing that rolling continuity while still 00:17:34.319 --> 00:17:36.599 allowing for regular electoral feedback. So what 00:17:36.599 --> 00:17:38.500 does this all mean? We started out looking at 00:17:38.500 --> 00:17:40.900 what appeared to be a standard, maybe even slightly 00:17:40.900 --> 00:17:44.200 tedious, historical table. Spreadsheet. A dry 00:17:44.200 --> 00:17:47.240 spreadsheet. But we uncovered an incredible narrative 00:17:47.240 --> 00:17:50.519 of political evolution. We watched a state enter 00:17:50.519 --> 00:17:53.700 the union in 1912 and immediately face empty 00:17:53.700 --> 00:17:58.500 seats for 80 days. We navigated the absurdity 00:17:58.500 --> 00:18:01.240 of state legislatures invalidating federal elections. 00:18:01.319 --> 00:18:04.140 We journeyed through the absolute chaos of the 00:18:04.140 --> 00:18:07.440 1920s and 30s, where senators were resigning 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:10.059 left and right. to put on judges' robes or join 00:18:10.059 --> 00:18:12.400 the president's cabinet, creating a revolving 00:18:12.400 --> 00:18:15.099 door of representation. A very chaotic period. 00:18:15.319 --> 00:18:17.660 And then we saw the pendulum swing completely 00:18:17.660 --> 00:18:20.119 in the other direction. The state entered the 00:18:20.119 --> 00:18:22.619 era of the multi -decade titans figures like 00:18:22.619 --> 00:18:25.279 Denis Chavez and Pete Domenici, who served for 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:28.279 a combined total of over 60 years, consolidating 00:18:28.279 --> 00:18:31.500 massive power for their state. And finally, that 00:18:31.500 --> 00:18:34.099 historical roadmap led us right up to the modern, 00:18:34.160 --> 00:18:37.000 entirely democratic delegation serving in Washington 00:18:37.000 --> 00:18:39.660 today. It is a remarkable sweep of history captured 00:18:39.660 --> 00:18:42.039 entirely through dates and tenures. And I think 00:18:42.039 --> 00:18:43.980 it is important to make a quick, impartial note 00:18:43.980 --> 00:18:46.319 for you, the listener, as we wrap up this analysis. 00:18:46.680 --> 00:18:48.279 Definitely. Throughout this journey, you've heard 00:18:48.279 --> 00:18:50.730 the political pendulum swing wildly back and 00:18:50.730 --> 00:18:53.410 forth. We've detailed Republican appointments, 00:18:53.890 --> 00:18:57.569 Democratic waves, invalidated elections, and 00:18:57.569 --> 00:19:01.109 deeply contested seats. It is crucial to emphasize 00:19:01.109 --> 00:19:03.670 that our goal today has simply been to report 00:19:03.670 --> 00:19:06.990 the historical roadmap exactly as it unfolded. 00:19:07.009 --> 00:19:09.769 We're not taking sides here. Not at all. The 00:19:09.769 --> 00:19:11.970 changing colors and party affiliations on this 00:19:11.970 --> 00:19:14.470 timeline reflect nothing more than the evolving 00:19:14.470 --> 00:19:17.529 choices and shifting demographics of New Mexico's 00:19:17.529 --> 00:19:20.410 voters over the last century. We are merely mapping 00:19:20.410 --> 00:19:23.289 out the historical facts of who managed to secure 00:19:23.289 --> 00:19:25.789 the office, how long they held it, and the mechanics 00:19:25.789 --> 00:19:28.109 of how they departed. Absolutely. The data tells 00:19:28.109 --> 00:19:30.150 the story, and we are just here to read the pages. 00:19:30.410 --> 00:19:32.410 But before we officially sign off, I want to 00:19:32.410 --> 00:19:34.609 leave you with a final thought to mull over on 00:19:34.609 --> 00:19:36.990 your own today. Okay, let's hear it. It's a conceptual 00:19:36.990 --> 00:19:39.369 thread. that really sticks out when you step 00:19:39.369 --> 00:19:41.289 back and look at the entirety of this timeline. 00:19:41.789 --> 00:19:45.250 Think back to the intense volatility of the 1920s 00:19:45.250 --> 00:19:50.430 and 30s. We saw multiple powerful U .S. senatorsmen. 00:19:50.759 --> 00:19:53.980 like Bronson M. Cutting and Sam G. Bratton, who 00:19:53.980 --> 00:19:56.279 went through the immense physical and financial 00:19:56.279 --> 00:19:59.380 effort of winning statewide elections only to 00:19:59.380 --> 00:20:02.039 willingly abandon their Senate seats to take 00:20:02.039 --> 00:20:04.019 appointments on the U .S. Court of Appeals. Yeah, 00:20:04.220 --> 00:20:06.680 that's still so strange to me. Right. Today, 00:20:06.859 --> 00:20:09.420 a U .S. Senate seat is widely viewed as the absolute 00:20:09.420 --> 00:20:12.380 pinnacle of political power and influence. So 00:20:12.380 --> 00:20:14.559 you have to wonder what exactly was happening 00:20:14.559 --> 00:20:17.019 in the political climate and the culture of early 00:20:17.019 --> 00:20:19.880 New Mexico that made an unelected judicial robe. 00:20:20.190 --> 00:20:22.269 so much more appealing than wielding the power 00:20:22.269 --> 00:20:25.450 of a United States senator? Wow. It's a fascinating 00:20:25.450 --> 00:20:27.690 question about how our very perception of power 00:20:27.690 --> 00:20:29.849 and influence has shifted over the last hundred 00:20:29.849 --> 00:20:32.470 years. That is such an incredible question to 00:20:32.470 --> 00:20:34.289 leave off on and definitely something to think 00:20:34.289 --> 00:20:36.569 about the next time you see a contentious Senate 00:20:36.569 --> 00:20:38.769 race on the news. Thank you so much for joining 00:20:38.769 --> 00:20:40.869 us for this deep dive into the political history 00:20:40.869 --> 00:20:43.430 of New Mexico senators. We hope you pulled out 00:20:43.430 --> 00:20:46.069 a few great facts, untangled the complex web 00:20:46.069 --> 00:20:48.289 of congressional classes, and have a totally 00:20:48.289 --> 00:20:50.890 new appreciation. for what a simple list of names 00:20:50.890 --> 00:20:53.269 and dates can actually reveal about the mechanics 00:20:53.269 --> 00:20:56.349 of our democracy. Until next time, keep learning, 00:20:56.410 --> 00:20:58.210 keep asking questions, and we will catch you 00:20:58.210 --> 00:20:59.329 on the next deep dive.