Zanetti Moving to Washington State to become CEO

New Mexico Republican Greg Zanetti, who dropped out of the 2010 Governor's race on July 17th, told us today that he’s moving out of state with his wife Teresa and two teenage children.

The New Mexico Brigadier General and investment portfolio manager said he’s been hired as the CEO for Los Arboles Management, LLC a real estate company that provides asset management services for it's clients.

Zanetti, who we last saw at the Albuquerque Tea Rally in April, begins the new job next Wednesday.

Zanetti said he was hired by his long-time high school friend Michael Larson to manage Los Arboles’ considerable portfolio. Larson is the chief investment officer for Bill Gates Investments (BGI) which oversees finances at the world's largest foundation.

After serving in the NM National Guard for 29 years, Zanetti told us he is retiring for the guard in December, and will be back in the state sometime in the late fall or early winter to attend his retirement celebration.

He said after a year long deployment to Guantanamo Bay he does not expect to be deployed, or called up again, before his retirement.

Zanetti said he and his new boss both graduated from Valley High School in 1976.

“We were gym rats, but not good enough to make the basketball team,” Zanetti said about his friend. “We spent a lot of time shooting hoops.”

The timing of Zanetti's move is in part centered around his two children, aged 14 and 16, who he wants to get settled into school at the beginning of the new term.

Four gubernatorial candidates are either in or considering running for the Republican Party nominations in 2010 including, State Rep. Janice Arnold-Jones, former NM GOP Party Chairman Allen Weh, Public Relations agency owner Doug Turner, and Dona Ana County District Attorney Susana Martinez.

Lt. Governor Denish Leads All Potential Candidates in 2010.

New Mexico Lieutenant Governor Diane Denish leads two potential Republican opponents by a commanding margin, according to statewide poll was conducted by Harstad Strategic Research, a national polling firm based in Boulder, and released today by the Democratic Governors Association.

In head-to-head matchups, Denish is leading both Steve Pearce and Heather Wilson by 22 points, with 57 percent of voters supporting Denish and 35 percent the Republican.

Denish does best with Hispanic voters, with 70% of their support. Former Representative Wilson, who is leaning against running only has the support of 25% of registered Hispanic women. Pearce gets 24% of their support.

The poll did not measure how Denish stacks up against other potential Democrat candidates including Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, and actor Val Kilmer. Nor also did not measure Denish' lead over NM National Guard Brigadier General Greg Zanetti or State Representative Janice Arnold-Jones.

"As a native New Mexican, Diane Denish really connects with the people of the state,” said Nathan Daschle, executive director of the Democratic Governors Association. “Voters in New Mexico recognize her positive vision for the future, which will build on her robust record of standing up for children, helping small businesses and strengthening schools.

Denish, who was the first woman to be elected lieutenant governor of New Mexico, has a particularly daunting lead among women and Hispanic voters. She also led both Pearce and Wilson in every region of the state.

The statewide poll was conducted by telephone, between May 31 and June 4, 2009 and surveyed 613 likely 2010 voters from every region of the state. The poll results are subject to a statistical margin of error of plus-or-minus 4%.

Denish Unveils Virtual Campaign Headquarters

Lieutenant Governor Diane Denish announced she's unveiling a new 2010 campaign website at www.dianedenish.com.

Denish said:

This site will be our virtual campaign headquarters, where we can share information about the campaign, discuss policy ideas, organize volunteers, raise money, and more. I hope you will take a few moments to explore the site, and urge your friends to do the same.

In a campaign email Denish said her campaign will focus on issues she's worked a lifetime on, including:

Protecting the jobs of today and creating the jobs of tomorrow. Investing in education at all levels in order to ensure that New Mexico's workers have the education and training to attract next generation jobs. Making quality health care more affordable. Ensuring that our communities are safe. And always striving to make our state government reflect the honesty and character of our people.

Last week, former GOP Party Chairman Allen Weh, who's exploring running for Governor in the Republican primary, launched a bilingual website, www.AllenWeh2010.com; and Greg Zanetti, the only declared Republican Candidate for Governor, is recruiting donors and delivering his campaign message at http://zanettiforgovernor.com

And, speaking of the wired world, Governor Bill Richardson has a new Facebook page for his supporters here.

UPDATE:

After our original post, former NM GOP Party Chairman Allen Weh, who's touring the state, announced he'll be using a new Twitter account at http://twitter.com/allenweh2010 to update his supporters while he's on the road, exploring his options for the 2010 Governor's race.

Zanetti Posts A Video "Missive" on "Pay to Play!"

On the same morning that Thom Cole at the ABQ Journal is "Up Front" with a story on how third-party marketer Marc Correra earned more than $11 million dollars in fees for helping secure state investments for a Chicago based financial firm, likely Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Zanetti has posted his fifth You Tube channel video. A missive on "pay to play" schemes.

Zanetti says the staggering $5.7 Billon loss in NM State Pemanent Funds has got his attention. He says, "discerning how it happened may be the bigger story."

Zanetti Tells the AP He's "Running for Governor!"

The 50-year old Republican financial adviser and brigadier general in the NM National Guard told Santa Fe based AP ReporterDeborah Baker that he's been campaigning full-time since February.

Baker interviewed Zanetti on Wednesday after a Tax Day rally on the Santa Fe Plaza at which he was a speaker. Zanetti told Baker,

I'm traveling the state, we're raising money and there's an awful lot of enthusiasm for the campaign.

We found Baker's article online at the Denver Post.

We also talked to Zanetti at the Albuquerque rally before he headed to Santa Fe. He definitely sounded like he was all but officially in the race.

To listen to our Tea Party Rally interview with Zanetti click here.

This morning, Zanetti appeared on 770KKOB's morning show with host Bob Clark. He's backing off his comments earlier in the week.

Zanetti say's he isn't prepared to officially announce, but we did find this website Zanetti For Governor.