Melanie Stansbury

In New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District, three-term incumbent Rep. Melanie Stansbury will face Republican challenger Ndidiamaka “Didi” Okpareke at the ballot box this November.

The central New Mexico district, which stretches from Albuquerque to Roswell, leans Democratic and is the most blue constituency in New Mexico, according to the Cook Political Report. As a result, Rio Rancho pharmacist and political newcomer Okpareke faces an uphill battle in a district that hasn’t elected a Republican to office since 2006.

The seat can also be a ticket to higher office, as both previous officeholders, Deb Haaland and Michelle Lujan Grisham, went on to further political ambitions as Interior secretary and governor, respectively.

Both candidates described the U.S. House of Representatives race as monumental with political control of the federal government hanging in the balance.

Okpareke said her election would ensure representation for Republican voters in a state overwhelmingly led by Democrats, while Stansbury spoke of the midterms as a turning point in U.S. politics.

“This election will be one of the most consequential of modern American history because what is on the ballot this election is saving our democracy and making sure that the checks and balances that are in our constitution are restored,” Stansbury said. “And so, the pressure is on to make sure that we deliver in saving our country and supporting our families and communities.”

In recent interviews, both candidates made their case.

Melanie Stansbury

Stansbury brings a strong political background, having held elected office since 2019, when she was sworn in as a representative in the New Mexico Legislature. From there, Stansbury won her congressional seat in 2021 and she has since weathered two presidencies and three election cycles.

Before taking political office, Stansbury was a natural sciences educator, researcher and adviser on water issues in New Mexico.

Her proudest achievement? One sentence written into an omnibus bill that opened the door for New Mexico voters to decide whether to fund universal childcare.

That one sentence unlocked millions of dollars in spending from the state’s Land Grant Permanent Fund, which was further affirmed when New Mexico voters agreed to amend the state Constitution.

“We are literally the envy of the country in passing this legislation,” she said.

Stansbury also pointed to secured funding for schools, hospitals, housing, behavioral health centers and water infrastructure as major accomplishments.

Ndidiamaka “Didi” Okpareke

Okpareke’s campaign marks her first foray into politics.

Okpareke, a Sandia High School and University of New Mexico graduate, said she threw her hat in the ring because she couldn’t see a future in New Mexico for her three sons.

“I think as adults we are responsible for their future, and so we have to create that opportunity for them,” Okpareke said.

If elected, Okpareke said she would draw on her 20 years of experience in healthcare and put forth legislation to bring down the costs of Medicaid and support rural hospitals. Also among her priorities would be securing funding for water infrastructure in New Mexico. Specifically, Okpareke hopes the state will build a large-scale desalination plant that could recycle brackish water.

Though Okpareke's politics largely align with the GOP, she hopes voters will look beyond partisanship.

“Don’t pin me to Trump, don’t pin me to a Republican you don’t like,” Okpareke said.

When asked about Donald Trump, Okpareke said the president was “a man of his word” and that she agreed with his policies on immigration, Medicaid and the Iran war, though she characterized the latter as a “military operation.”

Though Okpareke agreed with military strikes in Iran, she said she was unhappy with the duration of the ongoing conflict that Trump initially described as a “short-term excursion.”

“You did what you needed to do — hurry up,” Okpareke said. “Fix our gas prices, bring down our cost of living. Here in America we just want to be happy and safe.”

Money matters

As far as money goes, Okpareke and Stansbury’s campaigns are not on equal footing.

Okpareke’s team has collected $100,340 in campaign donations, a number dwarfed by Stansbury, who has raised $1.35 million, according to a July campaign finance report.

Stansbury’s biggest donor was ActBlue, a massive political action committee that has raised and donated billions of dollars to Democratic campaigns since its founding in 2004. ActBlue donated $141,384 to Stansbury’s campaign.

Stansbury also received $29,000 in funding from 314 Action Impact Slate, a PAC that describes itself as “the only national organization working to recruit, train, and elect Democrat(ic) scientists to office.”

Notably, Stansbury also received numerous donations from Native American tribal governments, both outside and inside New Mexico. She received $7,000 in donations from tribes in Washington and nearly $13,500 in collective donations from Isleta Pueblo, Santo Domingo Pueblo and the Mescalero Apache Tribe in New Mexico.

Meanwhile, Okpareke drew most of her campaign dollars from individual donors, with some funding from PAC groups such as the National Community Pharmacist Association and conservative organizations in various New Mexico counties.

“It's a grassroots campaign,” Okpareke said. “It's a campaign for the people.”