Martinez campaign outspent King more than 4-to-1

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez not only handily beat her Democratic challenger by a record margin. She maintained a spending advantage throughout the race.

Campaign finance disclosures filed Thursday showed that the Republican outspent opponent Gary King by a nearly 4-to-1 ratio. According to campaign reports, Martinez spent more than $8.5 million on her re-election bid, funds used to blanket New Mexico with television commercials and an online outreach.

King spent around $2 million in his losing bid and struggled to gain visibility.

The final campaign report showed that King’s unsuccessful bid left him with $691,000 in unpaid bills - from personal loans to himself - and an ending balance of only $6,500 from Nov. 1 to Thursday.

Meanwhile, Martinez reported spending more than $574,000 from the same time period and had an ending balance of $246,000.

In the final days of the campaign, Martinez collected $92,000 in contributions, while King raised $42,000, of which $25,000 came from personal loans from the Democrat.

King is the son of New Mexico’s long-serving governor, the late Bruce King, and part of a prominent ranching family.

The latest campaign fundraising disclosures were filed with the secretary of state’s office.

Martinez, the nation’s only Latina governor, garnered a 15-point re-election victory over King last month. It was the largest margin of victory ever for a Republican governor candidate in New Mexico.

In the race for land commissioner, which is heading to a recount, Republican Aubrey Dunn spent around $359,000 to unseat Democratic incumbent Ray Powell, who spent $273,000.

Overall, 928 candidates from across the state spent a total of more than $26 million and raised a total of around $24 million.

The Republican Campaign Committee of New Mexico spent nearly $5 million in an election that resulted in the first GOP state House in 60 years, according to records.

The left-leaning Patriot Majority New Mexico was second among PACs with expenditures and spending around $3.4 million, records showed.

Lobbyist Arthur Hull II, who represents PNM and Oklahoma City-based Devon Energy, topped the list among lobbyists in the state and spent about $71,000 this election cycle.

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Follow Russell Contreras at https://twitter.com/russcontreras.