[RoseofTexas]

NM is going to be tough to win....I'm hoping W makes a STRONG showing there! Yesterday our local RATrag reported sKERRY rally raked in 17,000 in Las Cruses, NM... dang it! I was hoping the bastard would get maybe a couple of thousand!

[CT CONSERVATIVE]

I know if we work hard we'll make a difference. NM was a wisker away from being red last election

[CedarDave]

Checked the Las Cruces paper and they estimate about 17,000 for SKerry. By way of contrast, Hobbs where the President visited two weeks ago also had an estimated crowd of 17,000. However, the population of Hobbs is only 28,000 while that of Las Cruces is 75,000 and is the site of NM State University. That tell you something??

Here are a couple of pics from the Scarey Kerry rally. More can be found at the link below:

(Friends of Billionairess Terasa Heinz-Kerry) Jim "Phil T. Rich" Steitz, left, Lauren "Mrs. Thurston Von Pennypacker III" Ketcham and Zachary "Mr. Thurston Von Pennypacker III" Schultheis pose Saturday before the U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., campaign rally at the Las Cruces Public Schools Sports Complex

Scarey Kerry

President Bush supporters let their voices be heard at the campaign rally where U.S. Sen John Kerry, D-Mass., spoke Saturday at the Las Cruces Public Schools Sports Complex.

http://www.lcsun-news.com/artman/publish/article_10208.shtml

[Theodore R.]

It may be that the large Democrat organization in El Paso bussed quite a few of those 17,000 people to Las Cruces. They're only, what, 60 miles apart?

What worries me about NM is that the Republican strongholds are in the lesser-populated southern part of the state. The Udall northern House district is likely to go 2/3-plus for KerryEdwards.

[CedarDave]

AHA!! the 17,000 figure was from the organizers, not the press. Here is this from the morning ABQ Journal story:

With President Bush returning today to New Mexico— a state considered one of 10 or 11 battleground states nationally in the Nov. 2 election— Kerry spoke to a big crowd in a high school football stadium called "The Field of Dreams." The crowd appeared to number at least 10,000, and organizers said there were 17,000 people.

http://abqjournal.com/elex/248165elex10-24-04.htm?rrc