New Mexico
Political lobbyists denounce harassment by state senator
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A Democratic state senator is coming under new pressure to resign or be removed based on new allegations of groping, sexist comments, and yelling and cursing at women, in an open letter Monday signed by 10 political lobbyists and advocates.
The letter urges leading state senators to move forward with an investigation against Democratic Sen. Daniel Ivey-Soto related to earlier allegations of sexual harassment by political lobbyist Marianna Anaya, and summarizes eight additional episodes involving alleged mistreatment of women by Ivey-Soto in varying levels of detail.
The Associated Press generally does not identify people alleging sexual assault, but Anaya has been openly public about her allegations and prior advocacy against harassment. Anaya has accused Ivey-Soto of groping her at a hotel reception in 2015 and of recent aggressive and disrespectful behavior while discussing proposed legislation over drinks.
A preliminary investigation into probable cause is underway, Anaya’s attorney has indicated. Legislative officials say rules prohibit disclosures about complaints without a probably cause finding.
The new letter from political advocates says women contacted their groups to voice additional complaints.
Reached by telephone Monday, Ivey-Soto declined to comment on the newly summarized allegations. He has said he has no recollection of touching Anaya and that their encounters were never sexual.
“The Legislature has a process to resolve allegations of harassment and bullying. I am and I will participate in any such process,” said Ivey-Soto, chairman of a Senate committee that vets major legislative initiatives and political appointments.
One source of the new accusations is identified by name — a woman who says she was physically assaulted by Ivey-Soto when he was in graduate school at the University of New Mexico and she worked at a support association for students.
The letter says the woman, who could not immediately be reached by phone, says Ivey-Soto pressed and held her against a wall and screamed at her for disregarding a task.
The letter also says that Ivey-Soto while drinking at restaurants rubbed his hand up the inner thigh of a female lobbyist and asked another lobbyist inappropriate personal questions before inviting her to meet privately in his office. The letter also alleges that Ivey-Soto groped a female advocate at the Statehouse and yelled and cursed at female election regulators.
Heather Ferguson, a co-signor of the letter and executive director of Common Cause New Mexico, said that Ivey-Soto referred to her and a female colleague by the nickname “Lips and Hips” in 2016.
“We walked into a meeting with him,” Ferguson said. “He said, ‘Here comes Lips and Hips.’”
Ferguson said she told Ivey-Soto the nickname was sexist and degrading, and that he repeated it later.
She described a “toxic culture” at the Legislature, praised Anaya’s courage for filing a formal complaint and said greater whistleblower protections are needed.
Democratic Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth of Santa Fe declined to comment through a spokesman.
“Allegations of misconduct are taken very seriously and are dealt with under the governing policies, procedures and statutes,” said Chris Nordstrom, spokesman for Senate Democratic leaders.
Nevada
Governor seeks no prosecution in restaurant encounter
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevada’s governor says he doesn’t want two men prosecuted for accosting him and his family last month at a Las Vegas restaurant and shouting profanities, taunts and anti-government statements in an incident captured on video and posted on the internet.
In a statement released Monday, Gov. Steve Sisolak said he was “outraged at the ethnic slurs and threats aimed at my wife” and he “cannot forget or forgive the vulgar and foul language hurled at my daughter.”
But the Democrat now campaigning for a second term as governor said he asked Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson not to pursue charges “that could arise from the abusive and menacing treatment.”
“I feel an obligation to avoid further fueling, and at worst, glorifying the anger and violence plaguing our nation and our state,” the statement said, adding a trial would only draw more attention.
“This statement stands as my final comment about this horrible incident,” Sisolak added.
Wolfson said he met with the governor and would honor Sisolak’s request not to prosecute.
Cellphone video posted to social media showed more than a minute of the Feb. 28 encounter involving the Sisolaks and Justin Andersch, a self-described “digital creator” who promotes far-right anti-government conspiracy theories.
Andersch asks to take a photo with Sisolak, poses with his arm around him, and then begins calling the governor a string of epithets.
As Sisolak and his wife, Kathy, turn and head out the door of the restaurant, Andersch follows and is joined by another man who calls Sisolak a traitor before returning to the restaurant.
The video ends in the parking lot as Sisolak’s daughter, Ashley Sisolak, a lawyer and public defender, rushes to the governor and his wife near their vehicle and Andersch turns away.
The incident followed several other suspected hate-crimes in recent months in Nevada and Las Vegas. An elected official in rural Nye County declared last August without evidence that Kathy Sisolak had family members in China profiting from selling coronavirus pandemic-related items.
The claim echoed a recurrent conspiracy theory espoused by some Republicans and anti-Sisolak, anti-mask activists.
Kathy Sisolak is a former municipal finance specialist of Chinese heritage who was born in the Nevada town of Ely. She was budget manager for Clark County and was a founder of the Las Vegas financial consulting firm Hobbs, Ong & Associates before she and Steve Sisolak married in 2018.
