The Food Depot 2026 Candidate Questionnaire
Governor Primary Candidates
In support of voter education and as a 501(c)(3), food banks can create, distribute, and publish a candidate questionnaire. The Food Depot cannot support or oppose candidates for office or coordinate activities with political campaigns
This campaign season, The Food Depot created a food-security questionnaire and sent questions to candidates running for NM governor, Lt. governor, and candidates in contested House district races in our service area. We’re grateful to candidates who took time to participate.
All responses have been unedited and we are sharing them so you can read directly from the candidates on positions related to a healthy, hunger-free New Mexico.
Question 1: The work of New Mexico’s food banks is currently supported partially by GRO funds through the action of the legislature. Given all the demands on state resources, how, if you choose to do so, will you commit to supporting state funding for New Mexico’s food banks in the 2027 state legislative budget?
Sam Bregman: No child, senior, or working parent should go hungry in New Mexico. I will fight to protect and strengthen state support for food banks in the 2027 budget because food security is basic security. I’ll prioritize stable funding through GRO and other recurring revenue sources, not one-time fixes. I’ll also demand accountability: faster distribution, better rural reach, and stronger partnerships with farmers and community groups. When families are struggling with grocery costs, government should step up not step back.
Deb Haaland: As a single mom, I relied on food stamps and WIC, and I know what it means when someone is there to help your family eat. Food banks are essential infrastructure and an investment that pays back. It’s hard for hungry kids to learn and hungry adults to work. As federal cuts squeeze SNAP, state dollars need to grow with the need. As Governor, I will work with the legislature to protect and push to increase GRO funding for our food banks in the 2027 budget, and consult directly with The Food Depot and partners to set those priorities.
Gregg Hull: New Mexico's food banks deliver results efficiently and deserve stable support. As governor, I will work to protect GRO funding for food banks within a disciplined budget process that prioritizes high-impact, accountable programs. Rather than simply increasing spending, I'll push for outcome-based funding models that reward food banks for measurable results. I'll also work to reduce the regulatory burden on private donors and businesses that partner with food banks, maximizing the impact of every public dollar by leveraging it against private investment and community generosity.
Ken Miyagishima: The GRO Funds started in 2024 and often compete with community centers, youth programs, and other NGOs. I believe funding for food insecurity aligns with the state’s anti-donation clause, allowing us to support it legally. As governor, I would use my discretion to allocate my portion of funds to New Mexico’s food banks and establish this as an annual funding program.
Duke Rodriguez: Use the Governor’s line-item veto power to reduce spending on redundant, ineffective programs. This will free budget space for projects with a high return-on-investment, like food banks.
Doug Turner: No response submitted.
Question 2: In seven New Mexico counties, 40-100% of the population lives in a food desert (limited or no access to grocery stores). How would you approach ensuring that the people in those communities have access to food? (Counties are Harding, Catron, DeBaca, McKinley, Rio Arriba, Colfax, Doña Ana, highest to lowest.)
Sam Bregman: Food deserts are a failure of infrastructure and opportunity. I’ll tackle them with real solutions: invest in rural grocery stores, food hubs, refrigeration, roads, and broadband so families can access deliveries and fresh food. I’ll expand mobile markets, community co-ops, and incentives for grocers to open in underserved counties. And I’ll strengthen local agriculture so more food is grown, processed, and sold close to home. Every zip code deserves access to healthy food.
Deb Haaland: Every corner of New Mexico—Tribal land, rural towns, colonias— deserves fresh food close to home. Several of these counties are home to Pueblos and Tribal Nations, and I will partner with them as sovereign governments. As I laid out in my Healthcare plan, I will grow the Healthy Food Financing Program to bring grocery stores, food co-ops, and farmers’ markets to underserved communities. Building on my Affordability plan, I will explore waiving permit fees for rural grocers in food deserts and invest in farm-to-market roads. Where a family lives shouldn’t decide whether they eat well.
Gregg Hull: Government programs alone cannot solve food deserts — we need to make rural New Mexico a place where businesses want to invest. As governor, I'll pursue targeted regulatory relief and tax incentives to attract grocery retailers, mobile markets, and food cooperatives to underserved counties. I'll work with the legislature to streamline permitting for new food retail operations in high-need areas. I'll also expand broadband access in rural communities, enabling residents to access online grocery and delivery services that didn't exist a generation ago. Infrastructure investment and private enterprise are the long-term solution.
Ken Miyagishima: Counties are political subdivisions of the state, while cities are not. As governor, I would require these counties to set up facilities for storing food and essential items for those in need, known as an "unfunded mandate." I recognize that Roadrunner Food Bank has a strong network for food distribution, but some areas, especially in the north central, eastern, and northeast New Mexico, have limited outreach.
Duke Rodriguez: Eliminate gross receipts tax on retail sales to encourage businesses to expand and relocate to rural areas. Pivot away from costly broadband hookups and toward Starlink portals to ensure internet access in these areas. Create new licensure categories within the Regulation & Licensing Department for mobile stores and retailers. Ease regulations on local farmers so they can sell more food where they grow it.
Doug Turner: No response submitted.
Question 3: NM Grown provides state funding to schools, child care centers, senior centers, and food banks to purchase locally grown foods from NM farmers and producers. In FY25, the program generated $7.05 million in total economic output. How would you support the expansion of NM Grown or expand selling opportunities for NM producers?
Sam Bregman: NM Grown is a win-win: healthier families and stronger local economies. I’ll expand it by increasing purchases from New Mexico farmers for schools, child care centers, senior centers, hospitals, and food banks. I’ll also invest in food hubs, cold storage, transport, and processing facilities so small producers can scale up and reach bigger buyers. We grow world-class chile, pecans, beef, and dairy. More of that wealth should stay right here in New Mexico.
Deb Haaland: NM Grown is exactly the kind of program that pays off many times over—for kids, for seniors, for farmers. As a small business owner who produced salsa for mom-and-pop shops across this state, I know what New Mexico buying New Mexican means. As Governor, I aim to grow funding for NM Grown’s Approved Supplier Program to certify more local producers, fully replace the federal dollars cut last year that powered NM Grown’s Regional Farm to Food Bank Program, and expand NM Grown eligibility to hospitals and correctional facilities.
Gregg Hull: NM Grown is exactly the kind of program government should support — it stimulates local economic activity, connects producers with institutions, and strengthens New Mexico's agricultural sector without creating long-term dependency. As governor, I'll champion continued funding for NM Grown and work to reduce bureaucratic friction that makes it hard for small farmers to participate. I'll also push to expand institutional purchasing requirements for state-funded facilities and create a streamlined certification pathway for small producers. Growing New Mexico agriculture from within our borders is smart economic policy and good nutrition policy simultaneously.
Ken Miyagishima: We can increase the number of buyers by including universities, community colleges, state employee cafeterias, and institutional facilities. To help small producers participate, we can ease certain requirements that may be limiting them. Additionally, the state could offer free hunting licenses to those willing to donate various game meats and fish.
Duke Rodriguez: I would continue the program and would direct the Regulation & Licensing Department to examine any relevant regulations which impact participants. Any regulations which can be safely eliminated should be eliminated to allow participants more flexibility.
Doug Turner: No response submitted.
Question 4: In New Mexico, nearly 615,000 households are struggling to make ends meet, despite being employed. These are healthcare aides, grocery store associates, restaurant staff, and other essential workers who make too much to qualify for assistance programs but not enough to survive. What interventions would you consider to stabilize working families so they can make ends meet? Would raising minimum wage be part of this equation?
Sam Bregman: If you work full-time, you should be able to afford to live. I’ll help working families by expanding the Child Tax Credit and Working Families Tax Credit, lowering housing costs, cutting health care costs, and growing better-paying jobs through apprenticeships and workforce training. Yes, wages matter, and minimum wage should be part of the conversation but it can’t be the only tool. Families need higher pay and lower costs. My focus is making work pay again in New Mexico.
Deb Haaland: Yes, and raising the minimum wage is just the start. Working New Mexicans are facing a crisis where wages fail to cover basic rent and groceries. As Governor, I will fight for a living wage indexed to inflation, expanded tax credits for families, and Paid Family and Medical Leave. By cracking down on wage theft and launching the New Mexico Affordability Navigator, we will make it easier for families to navigate state programs and ensure that earning more always leads to getting ahead.
Gregg Hull: The best intervention for working families is an economy that creates better-paying jobs through growth, not mandates. I'll focus on reducing New Mexico's high cost of doing business through regulatory reform and tax competitiveness, which encourages employers to raise wages on their own initiative. On minimum wage, I'm cautious — mandated increases can reduce hours and eliminate entry-level positions, hurting the very workers they're meant to help. I prefer workforce development investments, expanded EITC access, and removing barriers to advancement so workers can earn their way into stability rather than remain dependent on assistance thresholds.
Ken Miyagishima: I support the state-sponsored daycare program. By using an income-based sliding scale, we can ensure its viability and sustainability. This program has the potential to significantly reduce poverty in New Mexico. My economic plan for smaller cities, called economic gardening, aims to help these communities create important jobs with higher wages.
Duke Rodriguez: Eliminate state personal income tax so that working people keep more of their paychecks. Eliminate gross receipts tax on retail sales so that working people have more flexibility to spend their dollars. Child care assistance funds should follow the family so that families can make their own child care choices.
Doug Turner: No response submitted.
Question 5: What single measurable outcome on food access or nutrition would define success in your administration, and how would you hold state agencies accountable for achieving this outcome?
(This question is from a board member of The Food Depot )
Sam Bregman: Success means fewer hungry families. My measurable goal: cut food insecurity in New Mexico by 25% during my first term. We’ll track county-by-county hunger rates, child nutrition participation, and access to fresh food in rural communities. Agencies will have clear targets, public dashboards, and quarterly progress reviews. If programs aren’t delivering results, we’ll fix them. Government should be judged by outcomes, not press releases.
Deb Haaland: Cutting child food insecurity. New Mexico has ranked at or near the bottom for child well-being for as long as I’ve been in public service, and a state this rich in resources should not have hungry kids in its classrooms. I will set a clear reduction target, build it into the performance plans of the Health Care Authority, ECECD, and PED, publish progress on a public dashboard, and partner with food banks, Tribal Nations, and the Department of Agriculture. If the number isn’t changing, I'll say so—out loud—and course-correct.
Gregg Hull: My target: reduce the percentage of New Mexico children experiencing food insecurity by 25% over four years, tracked annually using USDA data. I'll hold state agencies accountable through performance agreements tied to budget allocations — agencies that hit benchmarks get maintained or expanded funding; those that don't face program reviews. I'll establish a Food Security Office of Accountability within the Governor's office to publish annual public scorecards. Metrics without accountability are meaningless. New Mexico has too long accepted poor outcomes — I intend to change that by making results, not spending levels, the measure of success.
Ken Miyagishima: By the end of my first term, I aim to reduce child food insecurity by 50% overall and by 40% in rural counties. I also want to increase the use of locally sourced food in state-run facilities to 30%. These results can be tracked. I would require agencies to report on meals served, nutritional improvements, and the percentage of New Mexico-grown foods purchased. Additionally, we can create public scorecards to display hunger rates and local food purchases by county.
Duke Rodriguez: We want to see improvements in our various Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program numbers: 1) a decline in the error rate; 2) a stabilization or decrease in the overall number of people receiving SNAP benefits; 3) a growth in the number of people graduating out of SNAP because of increasing income. New Mexico must become more accountable for its SNAP numbers because of pressure from the federal government.
Doug Turner: No response submitted.
Question 6: What experiences have shaped your understanding of food access in New Mexico, whether through your community, your work, or your own life?
(This question is from a volunteer with The Food Depot )
Sam Bregman: As a prosecutor and public servant, I’ve seen how hunger touches everything. Kids struggling in school, seniors choosing between medicine and meals, parents working two jobs and still falling behind. I’ve worked with families in crisis and communities doing their best with too little support. I know food insecurity isn’t about laziness it’s about costs, access, and systems failing people. That’s why I believe feeding families isn’t charity. It’s a moral obligation and smart policy.
Deb Haaland: I know what it’s like to be at the grocery store and have to tell your child to put something back because you don’t have the money. I lived that. As a single mom, I relied on food stamps and WIC. I know that addressing hunger means more than ensuring people don’t go hungry – it means people are happier and healthier, and it means our local economy is stronger, our public education system is more effective, and our communities are safer. I’ve lived these struggles and I’ve worked to address them in my time as a public servant.
Gregg Hull: Traveling across New Mexico as a candidate has made clear that food insecurity looks different in every community — from the distance a family in Harding County must drive to reach a grocery store, to the working parent in Albuquerque who earns too much for SNAP but too little to stock a refrigerator. What I've heard consistently is that people want dignity and opportunity, not dependency. That shapes my approach: connect communities with markets, reduce barriers to local food production, and build an economy where families can afford to feed themselves without needing government assistance to survive.
Ken Miyagishima: When I started my business several years ago, my office partner was a former co-founder of Casa de Peregrinos in Las Cruces. She shared stories about how it began and the amazing support from the community. Even though my family wasn't wealthy, we always had food on the table. I can’t imagine anyone in the U.S. going hungry. As governor, I will ensure that no one goes hungry during my term.
Duke Rodriguez: When I was a teenager growing up in Alamogordo, I received free lunch at school. However, I rarely used my free lunch tickets because the process embarrassed me. Everyone who received free lunch at school had to present a bright red ticket in the cafeteria. I hated being so visibly and obviously marked as a free lunch recipient. That experience taught me that food support programs should work to empower, rather than embarrass, recipients. We must use food support programs as a method to uplift people without shaming them.
Doug Turner: No response submitted.