“To die, to sleep—
To sleep—perchance to dream—ay, there’s the rub …”
     — William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 1

Dear Bernalillo County Democrats,

As you know, we are in the midst of Democratic Party elections. I want to take a moment to thank you for being participative constituents striving to make our world a better place. To County Central Committee members, a special thanks for taking part in this election process and thinking critically about the choices before you.

Ours is an important task, and I would like to share a few reflections on this moment, this place, and our responsibility: We are in the largest county in the great state of New Mexico, home to roughly one-third of the state’s voting population. We have led, supported, and stood firm in defense of Democratic values. We’ve made meaningful progress, and we’re not done. Right now, our party is feeling the strain—pain is evident, frustration is high, and character is often on display. That transparency can strengthen us or it can divide us. The choice is ours.

It’s up to each of us to reflect on where we stand—individually and collectively—and decide the path we’ll take. In our personal spaces, in the groups we build, and as part of the broader whole, we make decisions, shape outcomes, and move toward the world we hope to see. As Democrats, it is my hope that we move inclusively, anchored in our core values.

We the People are held to a higher standard because we are forging the way to a democracy of, by, and for The People. The way we do that is equally important as the place we are going—and therein lies the rub, to borrow from Shakespeare—the tension between how we act and what we seek to achieve. It is not enough to “win” if we do so in a way that promotes hate. We can and must be better than that.

Let’s have integrity, think critically, and strive—however painful it may be—to face our own rough edges and refine them in the fire of democracy: the transformational heat of our shared democratic values.

We cannot afford to sleepwalk through this moment or be guided by our lowest impulses—we must rise to meet it with integrity and courage. We must be willing to dream—and, yes, to face the rub. That is how we grow. That is how we lead.

Yours in the struggle for a more perfect Union,

Flora Lucero
Secretary, DPNM Affirmative Action Committee
2019–2023 Chair, Democratic Party of Bernalillo County