SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) -- New Mexico has its first Republican contender for governor ahead of the 2026 elections, as the three-term city mayor of fast-growing Rio Rancho launched his campaign.

Gregg Hull on Friday outlined priorities, including greater state investments in the health care workforce and roadways, in pursuing the Republican nomination ahead of an open race for governor. He also described a "zero-tolerance" approach to crime that would revisit the state's bail reforms and seek changes to juvenile justice statutes.

"I've taken a very pragmatic approach to solving problems up in Rio Rancho," said Hull, a former business executive for a commercial crating company and a motorhome resale business. "That's how we want to approach the issues in New Mexico."

Three Democratic candidates are pursuing their party's nomination as Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham terms out of office next year.

They are former congresswoman and U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a tribal member of Laguna Pueblo; Albuquerque-based District Attorney Sam Bregman, the father of Major League Baseball star Alex Bregman of the Boston Red Sox; and former four-term Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima.

New Mexico lawmakers this month approved legislation to prop up funding for food assistance and rural health care services in response to President Donald Trump's cuts to federal spending on Medicaid and nutrition programs, drawing on the state's large surplus linked to booming local oil production.

Hull said he hopes to deploy the state's outsized financial resources to expand vocational education, including training in construction trades, and shore up access to health care by underwriting medical school and other advanced degrees for health professionals -- "but on the caveat that we need them to stay in the state and provide those services to New Mexicans."

On public education, he emphasized a commitment to school choice but said it was too soon to say whether that might include public funding for private or parochial education options.

"School choice means, really, parental oversight of their child's education," he said.

Hull sounded a supportive note on the current governor's deployment of the National Guard in limited roles to shore up public safety in Albuquerque and the Española area.

"When we look at public safety, we need to have all options on the table," Hull said. "If these local governments need the help, then let's help them."

New Mexico has alternated between Democratic and Republican governors since the early 1980s.

In recent years, Democrats have consolidated control over ever statewide elected office in New Mexico, with majorities in the state House and Senate. Trump lost the presidential vote three times in New Mexico, but he gained ground in 2024.

First Republican enters race for governor of New Mexico in 2026 as Democrat terms out of office