Candidate Spotlight: Christine Lowery

Dr. Christine Lowery currently fills the seat of District One County Commissioner. Lowery, a democrat, was elected in 2018 and is serving the term of January 1, 2019 through December 31, 2022. Lowery is running for re-election, but her position will be contested by opponent Robert Armijo (D) when District One voters decide in June which democrat will move forward to face off against District One’s solo GOP candidate in the fall.

Lowery has been in and out of Cibola County her whole life, but more recently she has been here, and in District One, for at least 21 years. What Lowery said she loves most about living in Cibola County is being able to live in her own village, alongside her clan relatives and blood relatives. A hobby that Lowery enjoys is gardening. In her yard, she has multiple box gardens, fruit trees, and rose gardens that she tends to. Something people also might not know about Lowery is that she worked as a journalist in the Navy from 1971- 1974.

Lowery clearly explained the reasoning behind her decision to run for re-election, saying, “We have a team of commissioners, at this point, who work very well together. And we’ve, you know, brought the commission, along with our County Manager Kate Fletcher, a long way in four years. And so we want to continue this work, all five of us. And while our opinions may differ, we have a good deal of respect for one another, and so we want to maintain that working relationship that we’re excited about, you know, the next four years.”

Lowery said that she believes the personal qualities that have benefitted her in the position of commissioner thus far have been her “ability to read and understand policy, and to ask questions” — both of which have been shaped by her academic background. Lowery has often described being a commissioner as being on a continual journey of education. “My role as an educator is that you are always teaching. No matter you’re teaching through your questions, you’re teaching through the way you read things, the way you explain things, so it’s all education from my perspective,” shared Lowery.

Continuing with the description of commission work as a learning journey, Lowery talked a bit about what the past four years has taught her. “This is a learning process, all the way through… I’m in my fourth year now, so what you understand at this point, it really does fulfill a promise because you see things in a different light. You understand that planning takes years, and very small steps. And what you started out to accomplish four years ago will have changed many times,” Lowery said.

Lowery gave an example of the Public Safety Building that is currently in its beginning stages of development. Four years ago, Lowery said the idea of a Public Safety Building was “a dream,” but things changed and because of the years of hard work from Finance Director Paul Ludi, Manager Kate Fletcher, and the commission, the county put themselves in the position of being able to fund that dream and bring it into fruition, explained Lowery.

Lowery also talked about how there are projects that the commissioners might not be able to see through, adding that nothing in instantaneous in government work. “There are no promises, you may not get to see a project all the way through, but you can certainly watch it grow,” said Lowery.

One thing that Lowery said she hopes to do differently next term is to meet more people in the communities she represents in District One. The COVID-19 pandemic greatly limited Lowery and other commissioners in their scope of outreach to their communities, so Lowery said she would love to meet more people, have conversations with them, and get to know her constituents a little better this next term.

Some more of Lowery’s priorities entering a new term would be transparency and education, through making efforts to be transparent with the public and educating the public on the work of the commission and how it impacts them, to the best of their ability.

Finally, Lowery shared how she believes the work of the commission is important to the success of Cibola County: “It’s the partnership between Cibola County staff, the county manager, and the Board of Commissioners, so it’s not just the Board of Commissioners that contribute to the success. It really is a team effort. And one of the things we’ve tried to do is include both the City of Grants and the Village of Milan in doing a lot of the collaborative planning that is required. So it’s everybody on board, and that’s what will make Cibola County a success.”

Lowery also wanted to give a thank you to her constituents and voters for their “longstanding patience through COVID.” Lowery shared with ex-citement that with the help of county employees, the budgeting skills of county staff, and under the guidance of Finance Director Paul Ludi, Cibola County is doing very well and did not suffer financially in the unknown of a pandemic, but rather stabilized and is on the brink of thriving.

Primary Election Day is on Tuesday, June 7. Community members can call Cibola County Offices if they have any questions regarding upcoming elections, how to vote, and where.