Super PAC, union aid Sen. Smith’s challenger

Smith and Martinez

NMPolitics - The American Federation of Teachers and Progressive Kick, a federal Super PAC based in California, are trying to help Larry P. Martinez unseat Senate Finance Committee Chairman John Arthur Smith in next week’s Democratic primary. The last time state senator John Arthur Smith drove this many miles campaigning was during his failed 2002 run for the open seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. That year, Smith had prevailed in the primary against more liberal candidates largely because voters felt his record as a conservative Democrat stood the best chance against Steve Pearce in the historically Republican-leaning 2nd Congressional District. Pearce won and Smith returned to the state Senate seat he’s held since 1989. Since then, he’s garnered a reputation as a fiscal “Chicken Little,” accurately warning of the budget crunch that hit the state starting in 2008 and being one of the few Democratic voices arguing for controlled spending. Read More News New Mexico

Super PAC, union aid Sen. Smith’s challenger