LAS CRUCES — House Republican Leader Gail Armstrong, R-Magdalena, is calling on the Doña Ana County Commission to reject any effort to appoint Democratic nominee Lori Martinez to the House District 37 seat vacated by Rep. Joanne Ferrary, ahead of a commission meeting Tuesday evening.

Ferrary resigned months ahead of a contested general election and has endorsed Martinez to fill the remainder of her term. Armstrong sent a letter to Commission Chair Manuel A. Sanchez Tuesday and issued a separate statement arguing the appointment would hand the Democratic nominee the advantages of incumbency before voters have their say.

“This would be a blatant partisan power grab,” Armstrong said in a statement. “The Democratic nominee should have to earn this seat from the voters, not receive it through a political appointment designed to tip the scales in her favor.”

In her letter, Armstrong was more pointed about the process itself.

“I find this entire process to be not only suspect, but highly unethical,” Armstrong wrote. “We are less than four months away from an election in which the voters of House District 37 will choose a new representative.”

Armstrong noted the next regular legislative session doesn’t begin until January 2027 and no special session has been called, arguing there is no urgent need to fill the seat now. In her letter, she pointed to the vacancy left by the death of former state Rep. Aliseo Alcon as a contrasting precedent, writing that the governor “refused to fill the vacancy immediately and waited until well into the 60-day legislative session to make her appointment.”

“This is not about ensuring House District 37 has representation during a legislative session,” Armstrong said in her statement. “It is about using government power to manufacture an incumbent and give one political candidate an advantage she did not earn.”

Armstrong is urging the commission to appoint someone not running for the seat, or leave the position vacant until voters decide the race in November.

“The voters of House District 37 should choose their next representative,” Armstrong said. “That decision should not be made for them in a backroom appointment that benefits one party and one candidate.”

Her letter was copied to Commissioners Christopher Schaljo-Hernandez, Gloria Gameros, Susie Kimble and Susana Chaparro.