Anthony “Ant” Thornton and William “Bill” Scott are vying for an open state Senate seat in the East Mountains.
Scott and Thornton are squaring off to replace outgoing Sen. Greg Schmedes in District 19, a historically conservative district that includes Cedar Crest, Sandia Park and Edgewood.
Schmedes, a Republican, announced early this year that he would not seek reelection after he served one term in the Senate. Schmedes defeated Republican James White in the 2020 primary election before winning the election that November. White was elected in 2016, following fellow Republican Sue Wilson Beffort, who held the District 19 seat from 1997-2016.
Scott, a Democrat from Cedar Crest, understands the challenges facing him in this election.
“I have been told by multiple sources that I can’t win; New Mexico is a highly gerrymandered state, and Senate District 19 is designed to be safe for Republicans,” Scott said. “As politics gets more extreme, voters become galvanized within the two-party system, so the political elites are able to carve sections that they want. They, in essence, have turned democracy around: we have politicians choosing their voters rather than constituents choosing their elected officials.”
While Scott is fighting history, Thornton has made it in the past.
Thornton, a “walkaway” former Democrat, was chosen by the majority of New Mexico Republican voters in 2022 to be the first Black Republican nominee for lieutenant governor in New Mexico. He received 324,701 votes that year.
Thornton, a retired aerospace engineer, spent 27 years at Sandia National Labs, where he became the first Black director in Sandia’s history.
He hopes history repeats itself in November and he becomes the latest Republican to represent the district in Santa Fe.
“Senate District 19, representing the East Mountains, has been one of the few conservative seats in the Legislature in Santa Fe for over 20 years,” Thornton said. “Unfortunately, the state Legislature has been controlled by Democrats for over 90-plus years and it is because we have been ruled by a one-party system.”
Both Scott and Thornton cited crime, health care and education as some of their top priorities of their campaigns.
“New Mexico has devolved over the years to be No. 1 in violent crime per capita, 33rd in health care, and is ranked 50th in K-12 education. That’s a record of embarrassment that should no longer be tolerated,” Thornton said. “Sadly, the solutions to most of these issues can be solved using common sense policies offered by people holding conservative values. If our voices are not heard in the Legislature or implemented in new laws, the state will continue down the current path of mediocrity. A diversity of ideas is what this state needs.”
Scott, a retired Army veteran, said his “meat-and-potatoes” campaign is focused on the needs of New Mexicans.
“I’ve ignored the political noise and listened to the concerns of my neighbors: crime, economy, infrastructure, health care and education,” Scott said. “These are the focus for the campaign and how the district will improve, and they are not the noise shouted by political partisan elites but the quiet whispers of everyday people.”
Regardless of the winner, history will be made in November as either Thornton or Scott will join Harold Pope as the only Black New Mexico Senators. Both candidates downplayed the importance of that as they are focused on serving all of their constituents.
“In 2022, I was the first Black candidate to be the nominee for lieutenant governor in the state of New Mexico, regardless of party. It was historical, but not significant,” Thornton said. “I am running to represent the people of my district and the demographics of District 19 is an eclectic mix of urban affluence and rural poverty. Understanding and addressing their issues, regardless of race, is what I will be focused on as a state senator.”
Scott said, “If two white men can have political disagreements, why can’t two mixed race men? I see no difference.”
