It’s official — Democrats jazz up start of primary season

But New Mexico, sentimentally to me, would have been better that Nevada, if it had applied

The Democratic National Committee awarded Arizona a caucus a week after Iowa’s and South Carolina a primary the week after New Hampshire’s, in an attempt to broaden the base of early voters.

I’m definitely with South Carolina. It’s got the largest-percentage black population of any state, plus it’s a Southern state.

But Nevada? New Mexico has a much larger Hispanic population, percentage-wise, and a larger American Indian population as well. It also has a more diverse mix of big city (Albuquerque), medium cities, Santa Fe and Las Cruces, small cities such as Farmington, etc.

New Mexico, though, didn’t apply for either of the two slots. Of course, Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson is touted as a presidential hopeful, and perhaps he didn’t want to seem too grasping.