Melanie Stansbury
Melanie Ann Stansbury (born January 31, 1979) is an American politician and scientist serving as the U.S. representative from New Mexico's 1st congressional district since 2021. The district includes most of Albuquerque, along with most of its suburbs. A Democrat, she was formerly a member of the New Mexico House of Representatives from the 28th district. Early life and education. Stansbury was born in Farmington, New Mexico, and raised in Albuquerque. After graduating from Cibola High School in 1997, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in human ecology and natural science from Saint Mary's College of  California in 2002. She then earned a Master of Science in development sociology with a minor in American Indian studies from Cornell University in 2007, where she was a PhD candidate. Early career. Stansbury began her career as an ecology instructor at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science. As a White House Fellow, she worked as a policy advisor on the Council on Environmental Quality. She was a consultant at Sandia National Laboratories and later served as a program examiner in the Office of Management and Budget during the Obama administration. She worked on the staff of  the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and as an aide to Senator Maria Cantwell. Since 2017, she has worked as a consultant and senior advisor at the Utton Transboundary Resources Center of the University of New Mexico. New Mexico House of Representatives. Stansbury ran unopposed in the 2018 Democratic primary for the 28th district of the New Mexico House of Representatives. In the general election, she defeated Republican incumbent Jimmie C. Hall, who had held the seat for seven terms. Stansbury was again unopposed in the 2020 primary. She defeated Republican Thomas R. Stull and Libertarian  Robert Vaillancourt in the general election by a margin of 10 points. In the House, Stansbury introduced legislation to improve the state's energy conservation and water resource management. She served as the vice chair of the Energy, Environment & Natural Resources Committee. Upon Stansbury's resignation from the state legislature, the Bernalillo County Commission appointed Pamelya Herndon as her replacement. U.S. House of Representatives. Elections. After Joe Biden announced Deb Haaland as his nominee for United States Secretary of the Interior, Stansbury announced her campaign for the special election to fill the seat. In the first round of voting by  members of the state Democratic committee, Stansbury placed second after State Senator Antoinette Sedillo Lopez and automatically advanced to the runoff. In the second round of voting, she narrowly defeated Sedillo Lopez by six votes. As no Republican had represented the district since 2009, "The Santa Fe New Mexican" labeled her "a heavy favorite". She defeated State Senator Mark Moores and former Public Lands Commissioner Aubrey Dunn Jr. in the June 1 election in a landslide. Her margin of victory was slightly larger than President Biden's 23-point victory in the district in 2020, and significantly larger than Deb  Haaland's in 2020 for the House. Political positions. In a questionnaire created by the Adelante Progressive Caucus, Stansbury pledged support for Medicare for All legislation, a federal assault weapons ban, the D.C. statehood movement, canceling student loan debt, federal marijuana legalization, and several other progressive policies. She was endorsed by abortion rights group Voteprochoice. Personal life. Stansbury lives in Albuquerque.