Can Trump win in the most Hispanic state in the country? Campaign announces surprise rally in New Mexico

Donald Trump will visit New Mexico for a campaign event on Thursday, October 31. With the presidential election just days away, the Republican candidate will bypass battleground states to head to one that has voted Democratic since 2004. The announcement comes amid new polls showing an increasingly tight race in New Mexico. 

The New Mexico Republican Party was tasked with announcing Trump's rally in Albuquerque, the largest city in the state. Doors to the event will open at 8 a.m. and the former president is expected to take the stage around 12 noon.

New Mexico has chosen the Democratic presidential candidate in four of the last five elections. The last time it opted for a Republican was in 2004, when George W. Bush received 49.84% of the vote, barely ahead of John Kerry's 49.05%.

Can Trump win in New Mexico?

Like the rest of the country, New Mexico has suffered the consequences of the last four years of the Biden-Harris administration. Inflation, crime and particularly the immigration crisis hit the residents of the state hard, as it happens to be one of six states that directly borders Mexico. In turn, it is the state with the highest percentage of Hispanic population in the country, at 47%.

While a close race was not expected in the state, Trump lost by eight and eleven percentage points in 2016 and 2020, the latest polls showed a much closer scenario than expected.

Indeed, according to the latest poll by Redfield & Wilton Strategies, Kamala Harris is only four points ahead of Trump, 49% to 45%.

"The economy remains the single most important issue for pluralities of voters in every swing state polled. Abortion and immigration are the second and third most commonly cited issues in each state polled except for Georgia, where healthcare is the third most commonly cited issue, ahead of immigration," the pollster explained.

The poll took into account the rest of the candidates who will be on the ballot, such as Chase Oliver for the Libertarian Party, Jill Stein of the Green Party and Cornel West with his independent candidacy.

The heavy investment that could complicate Harris and Senator Martin Heinrich in New Mexico

With the election now just days away, there is heavy investment in getting New Mexico on the list of swing states. The effort is being led by Election Freedom Inc., a nonprofit that has been producing ads to raise awareness and understanding of the Democratic candidates among the state's residents.

Derek Dufresne, a consultant for Election Freedom Inc., spoke exclusively with VOZ and explained the strategy heading into the November elections, which is based on telling voters about the results of policies pushed by Harris and Heinrich.

"In New Mexico, we are running an aggressive seven figure, complete, issue-based campaign, focusing on the significant policy failures of Kamala Harris and Martin Heinrich, which will continue through November," he said.

"The reality is that New Mexicans deserve an honest conversation about the issues impacting them and their families. In a state dominated by a far-left liberal agenda, they haven’t had that. Educating these hardworking people on the specific policy failures of both Harris and Heinrich is crucial to laying the ground work for change. We are very confident that our contribution to the important dialogues happening around kitchen tables across the state will have a significant impact in the weeks to come and beyond," added Dufresne.