Salary: $90,000 per year • Term: Four years • Tasks: Regulates utilities, telecommunication, transportation, corporations and insurance industries • District: The majority of the Albuquerque metro area, with the exception of the Southwest quadrant, part of the University area and much of the Westside (detailed map: nmprc.state.nm.us)
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Overall
First and foremost, it’s great that both Montoya and Ocksrider chose the public financing route for their campaigns. We applaud them both for keeping special interest money out of the race. Ocksrider came across as well-prepared and sensitive to the PRC’s scandal-riddled past. He did a great job at presenting himself as measured and fair. But using his website to portray the PRC as a venue for job creation stopped us—that’s really not its role, and it called into question Ocksrider’s ability to fairly weigh business interests against consumer needs. And we were troubled by the weight he put on uranium mining and nuclear power. Unfortunately, Montoya does not offer a good alternative. She’s far from qualified for this highly technical position, and her campaign has lacked substance from start to finish. We find ourselves sadly unable to endorse either candidate in this important race.
