New Mexico Governor-elect Haaland Opens Transition: Website Taking Job Applications, First Staff Picks Ahead
Governor-elect Deb Haaland's transition in New Mexico got underway this week: the transition website, haalandtransition.com, opened on Wednesday, November 4, to accept applications for hundreds of appointed staff positions and seats on state boards and commissions; transition leadership names followed on November 5, and her first major staff announcement - the incoming chief of staff - is expected on Friday. Haaland, elected November 3, will be the first Native American woman governor in the United States.
According to the transition team, Haaland spent months quietly interviewing candidates for top jobs and began making official offers on Wednesday. Sarita Nair, the state's workforce solutions cabinet secretary and a former Albuquerque chief administrative officer, is seen as the leading candidate for chief of staff; reached this week, Nair declined to confirm the appointment but did not deny being interviewed.
Haaland, a former U.S. interior secretary and the first Native American cabinet secretary, campaigned on lowering family costs, expanding health care access and protecting the state's public lands. The team says all applications to serve will run through the website while board and agency searches proceed in parallel.
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham's term runs to year-end. Haaland takes office in January 2027, and her team says the cabinet should be essentially complete before the holidays so the administration can govern from day one.
(Source: New Mexico Governor-Elect Transition Team)
Source: New Mexico Governor-Elect Transition Team
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图片来源：Wikimedia Commons「File:New Mexico State Capitol, Santa Fe, New Mexico.jpg」（Ken Lund 摄，CC BY-SA 2.0） Image: Wikimedia Commons "File:New Mexico State Capitol, Santa Fe, New Mexico.jpg" (by Ken Lund, CC BY-SA 2.0)
