Albuquerque mayoral candidates split on Trump homelessness order threatening $167M in federal funding

Albuquerque mayoral candidates are sharply divided over President Trump’s executive order threatening to cut off federal funding to cities that don’t enforce civil commitment laws for homeless individuals.

Signed July 24, the order requires cities to prioritize involuntary treatment for people with mental illness or substance use issues and penalizes those that allow urban camping, loitering or public drug use. Noncompliant cities risk losing federal grants.

The stakes are high for Albuquerque. The city receives about $92 million a year in federal funding for homeless services, plus another $75.4 million in long-term grants for affordable and transitional housing.

Albuquerque’s 2024 point-in-time survey counted 2,740 people experiencing homelessness, up from 2,394 in 2023—one of the biggest increases in the country.

The annual count, conducted each January by the New Mexico Coalition to End Homelessness, aims to provide a snapshot of the city’s unhoused population.

Candidates support federal mandate

Several mayoral candidates said they support the order’s push for more enforcement and civil commitment to address homelessness in the city.

Alpana Adair, a write-in candidate and a former hotel HR executive who now works in the film industry, spoke with CityDesk ABQ, said she agrees with Trump’s order and believes “it’s time to take our streets back.”

“We can’t just hand out tents and then turn a blind eye,” Adair said. “It’s not safe, it’s a health hazard, and it’s not humane. Nobody should be living on the street. We have a duty to get them off the street, and they have a duty to pay us back once we get them back on their feet.”

Adair, who lives in the International District, said she often sees homeless encampments near her home and believes the city has little to show for all the money it’s spent. She criticized Health, Housing and Homelessness Director Gilbert Ramirez’s leadership and said Albuquerque deserves to lose federal funding because “we’ve mismanaged it.”

“In business, you have to make a return on your investment,” Adair said. “If people fail in business, they don’t get a second chance. They might get the door, depending on how egregious it is.”

Patrick Sais, a write-in candidate and former state policy analyst and community outreach coordinator, said he backs the executive order but wants the focus to be on support, not punishment.

“I believe in everything that it says there,” Sais said in a phone interview. “Let’s get these people the help that they need. Let’s get him off the street. If they have mental problems, physical problems, get them the help, because putting the band-aid on them doesn’t work.”

He said the city should distinguish between long-term homeless individuals and families displaced by the pandemic. 

“There’s a lot of homeless families out there that need a hand up to get back to living properly,” he said.

Eddie Varela, a retired paramedic and firefighter, said he supports the executive order and regularly visits a homeless encampment to talk with people living there.

“I have been actively studying this situation for two years,” Varela said in a phone interview. “I actually go to the homeless encampment on First Street and I-40 a minimum of twice a week, and I actually talk to the homeless.” 

He said the city’s current strategy is failing, estimating Albuquerque spends $200 million a year on homelessness while the crisis continues to grow. He believes the real number of unhoused residents is closer to 10,000—far higher than official counts.

“The city of Albuquerque is spending $200 million a year on homeless, and the city is failing dramatically,” he said. “We’re having more and more homeless in the city, and that will continue.”

Former Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White said he “will enforce the laws, including the camping ban,” and follow the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that gives cities authority to clear encampments.

“Albuquerque has incredible resources for those in need, and we will encourage the homeless to take advantage of that help,” White said in a written statement. “However, those who refuse assistance and insist on operating illegal tent encampments — which are essentially open-air drug markets — will be dealt with in accordance with the law.”

City Councilor Louie Sanchez, who has a law enforcement background and pushed to close the Coronado Park encampment, said he strongly supports following the federal order.

“Albuquerque cannot afford to jeopardize $92 million in annual federal funding or the $75.4 million in multi-year grants that support our homelessness programs,” Sanchez said in a written statement. “I would work to ensure compliance with the executive order while also demanding local flexibility in how we implement it.”

He criticized Keller’s record, saying the city has spent “hundreds of millions of dollars with little to show for it.” Sanchez pointed to a rising homeless count, a still-not-fully-open Gateway Center and growing encampments as signs the current strategy isn’t working.

He said the order “aligns closely with what I’ve been saying for years” about focusing on structured intervention instead of allowing open-air camps. He proposed creating a special outreach unit that includes APD’s Crisis Intervention Team, behavioral health clinicians and social workers to help with civil commitment.

“I would end the lawsuits” against the federal requirements, Sanchez said. “Fighting the federal government is costly, politically driven and counterproductive. Compliance keeps federal dollars flowing while giving us leverage to advocate for local solutions.”

Candidate Seeks Middle Ground

Mayling Armijo, former Bernalillo County economic development director and deputy county manager for Sandoval County, criticized both the federal order and Keller’s leadership while outlining a local path to compliance.

“Albuquerque should respond with leadership and accountability — something that’s been missing under Mayor Keller,” Armijo said in a written statement. “While I disagree with heavy-handed federal overreach, I believe Albuquerque can meet expectations by enforcing no-sleep zones around schools, parks and public transit while expanding housing and treatment services.”

She said the city’s $92 million in annual federal funding isn’t worth risking but blamed the Keller administration for putting it in jeopardy.

“We also have to be honest about why that funding is at risk. The Keller administration has failed to provide safe, accountable solutions,” she said. “As mayor, I will protect those dollars by taking decisive steps that satisfy federal compliance — without criminalizing homelessness or outsourcing our values.”

Armijo called for a local, outcomes-focused strategy, including safe, sanctioned camping areas with sanitation and mental health services, and more mobile outreach through Albuquerque Community Safety.

“Civil commitment should be used when clinically necessary, not to satisfy a blanket policy from Washington,” she said. “What would help is real investment in mental health outreach, substance abuse recovery and housing — led locally with accountability and urgency.”

Candidate Opposes Federal Approach

Former U.S. Attorney Alex Uballez criticized the executive order as a misguided policy that won’t improve public safety.

“The President’s directive equates homelessness and crime and, if it’s anything like his other pronouncements, will help fill prisons and his friends’ pocketbooks but won’t make our cities safer or help the people who need it,” Uballez said in a written statement.

Uballez, who served under the Biden administration, said the city needs “an approach that provides both care and consequences,” not one focused solely on enforcement and civil commitment.

“Those of us who live in reality understand that we get safer streets when we focus our enforcement and we expand initiatives that address root causes, treat addiction and end poverty in order to prevent crime,” he said.

The Incumbent’s Response

Keller called the executive order a misguided federal policy that ignores local realities.

“This federal mandate is misguided and ignores the realities on the ground, particularly in New Mexico, where our behavioral health system was dismantled by a previous governor,” Keller said in a statement. “Despite these hurdles, we have made progress with the Gateway System of Care, which helps people connect to housing, behavioral health treatment and other essential services.”

Keller acknowledged ongoing challenges with people who refuse services. 

“The federal mandate also fails to acknowledge that not everyone is willing to accept services. We are working to intervene where we can while addressing public safety concerns,” he said.

Health, Housing and Homelessness Director Gilbert Ramirez also defended the city’s approach.

“Every person deserves dignity, safety and the opportunity to be supported through life’s most difficult moments—including homelessness,” Ramirez said. “While the intent of the recent executive order may be to address visible street-level challenges, its approach risks penalizing people for circumstances often shaped by trauma, poverty and a lack of access to care.”

Ramirez said 88% of people who stayed at the Gateway Housing Navigation and Treatment Center have been connected to housing, treatment or both.

Executive Order Requirements

Trump’s executive order pushes for tougher rules on homelessness and tells federal agencies to give funding priority to cities that crack down.

It directs the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services to push for overturning court decisions that limit when someone with a mental illness can be placed under civil commitment—especially if they’re living on the street and can’t take care of themselves.

The order also says cities that enforce bans on open drug use, urban camping, loitering and squatting should get priority for federal grants. Agencies are told to review their programs and, as much as the law allows, favor places that meet those standards.

It takes aim at “housing first” policies, which it says do not do enough to promote treatment, recovery or accountability. Instead, the order calls for tying funding to programs that show results.

The order says 274,224 people were living on the streets across the U.S. during a single night in the final year of the last administration—the highest number ever recorded. It claims most are dealing with addiction, mental illness or both, pointing to federal data showing nearly two-thirds have used hard drugs and report mental health issues.

New Mexico Commitment Laws

New Mexico is one of just six states that don’t allow involuntary outpatient treatment, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. That means judges can only order inpatient care when mental illness and substance use co-occur. The other states are Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada and Tennessee.

Currently, under New Mexico law, there has to be “clear and convincing evidence” that someone is likely to seriously harm themselves or others before they can be committed. Once that happens, a hearing has to be held within seven days.

Judges can already require treatment in some cases, but advocates say the state doesn’t have enough services to handle more commitments.

Election Context

Seven candidates will appear on the ballot for Albuquerque’s Nov. 4 mayoral election, with homelessness emerging as a top campaign issue alongside crime and economic development.

Incumbent Keller is seeking a third term. His challengers include Varela, Uballez, Sanchez, Armijo, White and Daniel Chavez — who did not respond to a request for comment by press time. Write-in candidates Adair and Sais did not collect the 3,000 petition signatures required to qualify for the ballot. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, a runoff will be held within 45 days.

The city cleared more than 1,000 encampments in January 2024, according to city data, but continues to face lawsuits over its handling of homelessness. A federal judge previously blocked the city from destroying property during encampment sweeps.

Keller has defended the city’s current approach to encampment enforcement, saying Albuquerque clears about 200 encampments a week and tries to balance legal limits with public concerns.

“We try to balance civil rights and the law, because it’s not illegal to be in a park or stand on a sidewalk,” Keller said. “I know a lot of people don’t like that, but it’s literally in the Bill of Rights.”

He said the city posts notices and offers services, transportation and storage for belongings—at least twice—before clearing a site. “We have a whole warehouse filled with people’s belongings that we save for them.”

Encampments near schools or other restricted areas are cleared immediately. Illegal activity like public defecation or blocking entrances can lead to citations or arrests.

While the city arrests people for drug trafficking and use, Keller said it only issues citations for low-level drug possession due to the McClendon settlement.

“If you get cited three times, then there’s a bench warrant,” he said. “It’s not fast, but we do what the law allows us to do.”

He added the city doesn’t arrest unhoused people for simply sitting at a bus stop. “We try and get them into a shelter.”