Linda Trujillo waves to voters outside the Santa Fe County Fairgrounds in an effort to gain votes in the race for Senate District 24. Trujillo emerged victorious in a three-way race against County Commissioner Anna Hansen and Veronica Krupnick to take the seat.
Linda Trujillo waves to voters outside the Santa Fe County Fairgrounds in an effort to gain votes in the race for Senate District 24. Trujillo emerged victorious in a three-way race against County Commissioner Anna Hansen and Veronica Krupnick to take the seat.
She received 62% of the vote in a competitive three-way race for the Senate District 24 seat, outdistancing Santa Fe County Commissioner Anna Hansen and political newcomer Veronica Krupnick.
According to unofficial results from the Secretary of State's Office, Hansen had 23% and Krupnick got 15%.Â
Trujillo's victory was as wide as it was impressive: She was running against the well-known Hansen, who'd served two terms on the commission, and Krupnick, who was making her first foray into politics but had campaigned hard for the seat. Trujillo, who won't face an opponent in the general election, succeeds longtime Sen. Nancy Rodriguez, who retired from the seat she'd held since 1996.
Reached by phone late Tuesday, Trujillo said she was not ready to claim victory, but added: "I am feeling more confident, but there's still too many votes to be counted out there to say it's over. But it does feel really good."
Speaking by phone, Hansen said, "No matter what, I have won. I ran a very good race and feel very positive about it. I had a lot of community support, but it just might not have been enough."
The sprawling district of roughly 51,000 residents takes in much of Agua FrÃa and the city's south side.Â
Trujillo, a lawyer by trade, previously served on the Santa Fe school board before becoming a legislator. After leaving the House of Representatives, she become head of the state Licensing and Regulation Department and ran that agency for about three years. She played a role in developing the state's cannabis industry, which is overseen by the department's Cannabis Control Division.
Hansen, a two-term Santa Fe County commissioner, started a design and consulting business in the 1980s and served as director of community building and development for Oshara Village near Santa Fe Community College. She also helped start the Green Fire Times, a monthly journal focusing on the environment and sustainability.
Krupnick, a newcomer to the political arena, has worked as an advocate and peer support coordinator for CASA First, which provides court-appointed special advocates for foster children in the First Judicial District. She currently works as a legislative analyst for leading House Democrats.Â
The three-way race was not one of contention or disagreement on most issues, but there were minor differences here and there. On the issue of a state-mandated family and medical leave program for workers, Trujillo and Krupnick voiced support, while Hansen said she had concerns of how that might affect small businesses with five or fewer employees.
Efforts to push a bill through creating such a program failed during this year's 30-day legislative session.Â
