Steve Pearce will lead the Bureau of Land Management, after the U.S. Senate voted Monday to confirm his nomination by President Donald Trump.

The 46-43 vote fell along party lines and placed Pearce at the helm of the federal agency tasked with overseeing 247 million acres of federal public land in 12 states, mostly in the western region of the country, along with 700 million acres of underground mineral rights.

That includes oil and gas drilling, with public land accounting for more than half of New Mexico’s fossil fuel operations – mostly in the Permian Basin and positioning the state as second in overall crude oil production.

A Republican from Hobbs, Pearce served as the U.S. Representative for New Mexico’s Second Congressional District in seven terms from 2003 to 2009, and again between 2011 and 2019.

The Second District contains most of southern New Mexico, including its deep-red southeast corner consisting of portions of Eddy, Lea and Chaves counties. Pearce left the post to run for New Mexico governor in the 2018 election, losing to current Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

Pearce also chaired the New Mexico Republican Party from 2018 to 2024. President Donald Trump nominated Pearce for BLM director in November 2025 and was supported by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

Both of New Mexico’s Democratic U.S. Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Lujan were among the votes against Pearce’s confirmation.

Heinrich, who sits on the Senate Natural Resources Committee, which held Pearce’s confirmation hearing and ultimately voted to advance him to the full body, said he was concerned the former congressman would acquiesce to private industry needs over those of conservation of federal lands for public use.

Heinrich voted against advancing Pearce’s nomination at the Feb. 25 hearing. The senator said after his confirmation that Pearce must honor promises made during the hearing to address abandoned oil and gas wells which Heinrich said were pervasive across federal public land.

“I’ve strongly disagreed with Congressman Pearce’s past opposition to national monument designations and support for public land selloffs, and that is why I voted against his nomination to lead BLM,” Heinrich said in a statement.

“Now that the Senate has confirmed him, however, I will hold him accountable for following the rule of law, protecting our public lands, and honoring his confirmation hearing commitments.”

During his confirmation hearing, Pearce said public land should be used to develop domestic energy and other minerals where possible, ensuring the U.S. was not dependent on adversarial nations.

“We must preserve the natural spaces so all people have access to the spiritual beauty of the outdoors, where hunting and fishing can be passed down from one generation to the next, where critical minerals can be developed, freeing us from dependence on China,” Pearce said.

New Mexico Republicans celebrated Pearce’s confirmation as one that would give the state a voice in an agency critical to its economy.

Oil and gas operations, which are largely on BLM land in New Mexico, make up about 40% of the state’s General Fund revenue, providing more than $13 billion to state and local governments, according to the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association.

“With Steve’s immense experience in the oil and gas industry, he will bring much-needed experience to this position, and I am confident the bureau will thrive under his leadership,” said Amy Barela, chair of the New Mexico Republican Party and an Otero County commissioner seeking her second term in this year’s election.

“I would also like to extend my gratitude to President Trump for his nomination that made today possible.”

Oil and gas industry groups also supported Pearce to lead to the Bureau of Land Management.

Western Energy Alliance President Melissa Simpson said Pearce’s experience in the oil and gas industry displayed a value for “multiple uses” of public land she said would support multiple critical industries in the U.S.

“His tenure in Congress and his time as a small business owner in the oil field show he’s a champion of multiple-uses of public lands, from expanding domestic energy production, supporting grazing and recreation, and protecting landscapes through targeted conservation,” Simpson said.

Environmental groups were critical of Pearce’s confirmation, arguing his position to lead the Bureau of Land Management could present a risk to endangered species, air quality and lands set aside for recreation.

Chris Krupp, a public lands attorney with Santa Fe-based WildEarth Guardians raised concerns that Pearce would support selling federal public land to industries such as oil and gas.

“Today, we desperately need a new land management ethic–one that fosters resilient ecosystems and human health instead of resource extraction,” Krupp said.

“Unfortunately, new BLM Director Steve Pearce is the opposite of what we need but exactly what you’d expect from the Trump administration: an oil and gas industry insider who values public lands for their profit potential.”

Duke Rodriguez planned to tap into his experience as a state cabinet secretary and healthcare executive should he be elected governor of New Mexico.

Rodriguez, 68, is chief executive officer of cannabis company Ultra Health, New Mexico’s largest, which he founded in 2012. He was named chief operating officer of Lovelace Health System at age 32 and served as cabinet secretary of the state’s Health and Human Services Department from July 1996 to October 1997, under former Gov. Gary Johnson.

One of three candidates vying for the Republican Party’s nomination for governor in the June 2 Primary Election, Rodriguez will take on the Democrat nominee on Nov. 3 to replace outgoing Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat who is term limited and cannot run for another term.

El Rito Media sat down with Duke Rodriguez to talk about his plans for the state.

What are your plans for k-12 education?

“What I’ve often said is we don’t have a resource problem when it comes to education. We have a results problem. And the thing that I would do differently is to, at the very core, let teachers teach. We built a system that rewards the administration, that takes dollars out of the classroom, and spends more dollars on the administration.

“I want to put monies back in the classroom, support teachers, make sure that no one’s throwing books at them, no one’s choking them out, and emphasizing two things, the core curriculum, reading, writing, arithmetic, but also realizing we need to supplement it with new activities for a new student.”

What are your spending priorities?

“All we do in New Mexico is increase spending. We call it Medicaid. We call it SNAP, the food stamp program. We call it the Behavioral Health Trust Fund. We call it the Health Care Affordability Fund.

“All those things are about is spending. They’re not about investing in New Mexico’s future. I would prioritize investing in projects that increase jobs, increase employment. Take, for example, desalination. I am a huge fan of desalination. On my drive up here from Albuquerque, outside of, just outside south of San Antonio, if you go by the Rio Grande right now, it is dirt dry. There’s not an ounce of water traveling through that river right now.”

What is your tax policy for individuals and companies?

“I am talking about the absolute elimination of New Mexico state personal income tax, done, no tax returns. No. 2, I believe, and I’m very careful to say this where other candidates don’t know what it mean; I’m very careful to say elimination of New Mexico gross receipts tax on retail sales.

“(I’m also for) the elimination of property tax on the state’s portions of the mill levy. Mill levy includes normally a city, county, and state portion. I believe we can eliminate 100% on the state’s portion

“This pushes back on those that say, oh my God, you’re going to destroy the cities and counties. Here, you go right back, cities and counties, and you’re accountable to your local voters. You tell them why you need what you need. The state has no role in that.”

How would you reduce homelessness and drug abuse?

“One third of the homeless on the street today have been previously through the foster care or (Children, Youth and Families Department) system. One third of them. I believe that we owe them the opportunity to give them crisis treatment for mental health.

“I believe we should enhance our investment in addiction care. But after that, if they’re not willing to accept the help, then we have to be a little more institutional and there’s nothing to apologize for being institutional. But in no case is it compassionate or responsible to let them rot in the sun on our sidewalks.”

What can New Mexico do to attract new businesses?

“I am the only candidate who has lived and done Main Street to Wall Street. And when I say that I’ve started my own companies. I’ve written the paychecks. I’m the guy that owns the company.

“How do you can you run your small business if you don’t have more customers buying homes? How can you run your smaller business if you don’t have more people coming in and buying dresses at your boutique shop? You need a growing population. That’s what Texas has. So, if you want to grow this state, you have to have a vibrant economy. That’s how you attract business.”

What are your plans for rural health care?

“I believe under any structure, the rural health care system has to be maintained and kept intact. We need to prioritize where the dollars go and say that if this doesn’t matter anymore, I’ll spend it on primary care. The least cost investment is making sure that the primary care network is intact. That’s an easy fix. It’s not a big dollar. That’s not what’s driving New Mexico’s health care dollars.

“Medicaid recipients have to have skin in the game. The liberals are going to hate this. There’s a copay on your office visit. You don’t show up, you will copay. You show up, it’s a $5 copay, $20 for not showing up. You have to have skin in the game.”

How would you address environmental concerns?

“I believe that the environment, for whatever reason, is going to produce greater challenges going forward. We have the resources to make sure that we take preventative action to make sure it’s not catastrophic.

“We can’t stop every windstorm where the power lines cross, that then ignite a fire, that the wind then blows and goes across. But we can take mitigating steps to make sure the damage can be controlled, and we can respond faster.”