(Updated) Rey Garduño Seeks Public Funding for ABQ District 6 City Council Race

UPDATE: Rey Garduño now has a website: https://reygarduno.blogspot.com/
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Long-time community activist, public information specialist and small businessman Rey Garduño (right) has decided to pursue public funding for his campaign to replace Martin Heinrich on the Albuquerque City Council in District 6 in the Southeast Heights. Heinrich has plans to run for Congress in CD1 against Repub incumbent Heather Wilson and will resign his seat on the Council when his terms ends. City Council elections are set for even numbered districts this coming November.

Garduño currently serves as Vice Chair on the Board of Common Cause NM. He's also a member of the Board of the Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP), and operates Rey Garduño Photography. He retired in 2005 from his post as head of marketing for UNM Hospitals, and he was a Public Affairs Representative at Carrie Tingley Hospital for nine years. Click to see his extensive resume detailing 25 years of professional experience in managing staff and resources, as well as his many years of service to the community on various boards and professional organizations. Rey has also worked hard in support of various initiatives including passage of minimum wage and clean elections legislation, the Better New Mexico campaign and ethics reform.

Like Debbie O'Malley, who's running for reelection to her North Valley City Council seat in District 2, Garduño is currently in the process of collecting signatures and $5 donations from registered voters in his district so that he can qualify for public funding. He has to gather more than 250 before the May 31 deadline. If you live in District 6 and would like to sign up, you can contact him at 266-4424 or reygard@unm.edu. He's also looking for people to help collect the signatures and donations. You don't need to be a resident of District 6 to help out.

Other reported candidates for the District 6 seat include UNM graduate student Joe Garcia, who is president of the Graduate and Professional Student Association, and Joan Griffin, who owns a local ad agency and operates a dating service franchise. Griffin served as Mayor Marty Chavez's press person during his 2005 reelection campaign.

More on O'Malley's District 2 Race
See our previous guest blog by Suzanne Prescott to learn more about the public financing program, as well as how to get involved with Debbie O'Malley's (left) campaign in District 2. According to a post today on Joe Monahan, O'Malley will have a competitor in her race to retain her seat in the form of Katherine Martinez, who has close ties to Albuquerque Mayor Marty Chavez:

Meantime, on the city election watch 34 year old Katherine Martinez, who is active in the mayor's ABQ Green initiative and is the government affairs director for the Central NM Homebuilders Association, has launched a campaign against City Council President Debbie O'Malley who has often clashed with His Honor over growth issues. Martinez also worked in government affairs for the ABQ Chamber of Commerce.

Martinez (Katherine Carroll), a Democrat like O'Malley, was born in North Carolina and moved to New Mexico eight years ago with her native New Mexican husband. She says she has lived in the ABQ North Valley district only two and a half years, but "it doesn't take long to get to know people."

to determine which Albuquerque City Council district you reside in.

UPDATE: Also see our later post on Rey Garduno, which includes links to a two-part interview with him by Suzanne Prescott that appeared on New Mexico FBIHOP.