Deb Haaland, the former secretary of the Interior who was the first Native American to lead a cabinet agency, on Tuesday announced a bid for governor of New Mexico.
Ms. Haaland, a Democrat, previously served as a congresswoman from the state. She is widely seen as a favorite to succeed Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is not running again in 2026 because of term limits.
Ms. Haaland, 64, a member of the Laguna Pueblo, would be the first Native American woman to serve as governor of a state. Her campaign described her as a “35th generation” New Mexican.
She is one of the first top alumni of President Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s administration to announce a run for office since Democrats lost power, and the first significant candidate to declare a bid for governor in New Mexico.
In a video announcing her campaign, Ms. Haaland leaned on her working-class background to make the case that she could relate to struggling families and help them out. She has said that she started a salsa-making business to support herself as a single mother, and at times relied on food stamps. New Mexico is one of the poorer states in the country by some metrics, and economic insecurity and issues like drug use and addiction are at the forefront of voters’ priorities there.
“Why can’t our families pay our bills?” Ms. Haaland asked in the video. “Crime. Poverty. Homelessness. Addiction. They will keep pulling us down if we do the same things and expect a different result.”
