Democrats seek momentum in lopsided US House victory

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A major Southwestern metro region delivered a resounding victory to a Democratic congressional candidate who embraced the Biden administration's prescription's for economic recovery, as voters rebuffed Republican overtures across Albuquerque's heavily suburban and Latino political landscape.

Tuesday’s special election vaulted 42-year-old Democrat Melanie Stansbury, a second-term state representative, into the congressional seat held previously by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.

The election is a precursor to a handful of races to fill vacancies in Congress ahead of 2022 midterm elections. Democrats held a 219-211 majority in Congress going into Tuesday’s vote in New Mexico's 1st Congressional District.

Stansbury won roughly 60% of the vote in a four-way race, handing a stinging defeat to three-term Republican state Sen. Mark Moores.

Uncertified election results on Wednesday showed a victory margin of 24.5 percentage points for Stansbury — far greater than Haaland's 16-point win in 2020. That even edged past Biden's 23-point win in New Mexico last year.

Stansbury highlighted a working-class, public school upbringing in Albuquerque — her mother was a factor worker and crane operator — and she embraced top-line Democratic initiatives on pandemic relief, infrastructure spending and interventions to slow climate change.

State Democratic Party official say they used the special election to rebuild advocacy infrastructure and return to in-person political events, keeping in mind the party's narrow majority in Congress.

Stansbury leveraged fundraising drives by splitting contributions with other Democratic politicians. Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, campaigned in New Mexico alongside Stansbury during the final week of early...