Candidates for secretary of state, commissioner of public lands, county sheriff and other local races are expected to participate in the public event.

Organ Mountain News report

LAS CRUCES - The Picacho Hills Property Owners Association and the Picacho Hills Country Club will host a primary candidate forum on Tuesday, May 19, featuring candidates in several contested local and statewide races.

The public forum is scheduled from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Picacho Hills Country Club, 6861 Via Campestre in Las Cruces. Organizers said the event marks the fifth biennial primary candidate forum hosted by the two groups.

According to organizers, candidates in competitive primary races for secretary of state, commissioner of public lands, Doña Ana County commissioner District 1, county assessor and county sheriff have been invited and are expected to participate.

Dr. Christa Slaton, a former New Mexico State University professor of American politics, and Walt Rubel, former Las Cruces Sun-News editor and political commentator, will moderate the event. Candidates will briefly introduce themselves before answering questions from moderators and audience members.

“This is the 5th biennial primary candidate forum organized by these sponsors,” organizers said in the release. “The format is designed to maximize the opportunity for interaction between the audience and the candidates.”

Paul Maxwell, chair of the PHPOA Forum Committee, said the group values providing a bipartisan public forum for voters.

“We are excited to have the opportunity to hear from the candidates for these competitive primary races,” Maxwell said in the release. “As a retirement community we have very active and civic-minded citizens, many from other parts of the country. We take pride in providing our forum in a bipartisan and open setting.”

Organizers said invited candidates include:

• Secretary of State: Katharine Clark and Amanda Lopez Askin
• Commissioner of Public Lands: Juan de Jesus Sanchez III, Matthew McQueen and Jonas Moya
• County Commissioner District 1: Angela Rowe Garcia and Daisy Ann Maldonado
• County Sheriff: Gabriela Lozano, Jon R. Day, Rafael Reyes Jr., James A. Frietze, Ricardo Segovia, Eugene C. Alvarez, Vanessa Ordonez, Gabriele Lee Baisas, Todd Garrison, Byron Hollister and Jaime Marquez Quezada
• County Assessor: Ruben Reyes, Shannon Reynolds and Eugenia Montoya Ortega

For more information, organizers asked the public to contact Paul Maxwell at 915-276-3024 or by email at pcmaxwell44@gmail.com.