Mike Pence visits Roswell to campaign for Ronchetti
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Oct. 7—Former Vice President Mike Pence campaigned for Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Ronchetti at a private event Thursday in Roswell.
"The momentum is clearly with the Ronchetti campaign following the recent TV debate and we're excited that former Vice President Mike Pence is coming to campaign with Mark ... in Roswell," Ryan Sabel, Ronchetti's communications director, wrote in a statement.
"Mark is crisscrossing the state to earn every vote and is humbled by all the support he's receiving," Sabel added.
Pence's visit to New Mexico comes a day after Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin stumped for Ronchetti in Albuquerque and Las Cruces.
Youngkin is the third Republican governor to travel to New Mexico in recent months to campaign for Ronchetti, a former television meteorologist who is challenging Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham in the Nov. 8 midterm election.
The former vice president announced his trip to New Mexico in a late Thursday morning tweet.
"Heading to Roswell today to support the next Governor of the Great State of New Mexico @MarkRonchettiNM! See you soon!" a tweet from Pence's official Twitter account stated.
The tweet included an emoji of the U.S. flag and a link to a Republican fundraising platform to donate to Ronchetti's campaign.
Ronchetti isn't the only New Mexico candidate on Pence's radar.
U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández was among 16 Democrats targeted in a $10 million advertising campaign by Pence's political advocacy group earlier this year.
The Democratic Party of New Mexico was quick to react to Pence's New Mexico visit.
"Ronchetti continues to join far-right, extremists on a mission to ban abortion across the country," the party tweeted in response to Pence's announcement.
In a statement issued later, the party continued to link Pence's visit to abortion, which Lujan Grisham has turned into a key campaign issue following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling that established a constitutional right to abortion.
"Ronchetti's Roswell rendezvous with Mike Pence sends a clear message to New Mexicans: he's looking to bring Pence's right-wing, anti-abortion, job-losing agenda to New Mexico," party spokesman Daniel Garcia wrote in a statement.
Follow Daniel J. Chacón on Twitter @danieljchacon.
