New Mexico is the only state where lawmakers don’t get paychecks
Elise Kaplan
Elise Kaplan moved to New Mexico in 2010 and was instantly enamored with the landscape, the people and the stories the state holds. She graduated from the University of New Mexico with a degree in journalism in 2012. Before joining Searchlight as the education reporter, she spent almost nine years focusing on accountability while covering crime, the criminal justice system and more for the Albuquerque Journal. She has won multiple regional awards for her reporting on subjects including the ongoing crisis at the state’s largest jail and the pandemic on Native lands.
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From cars and couches to safe havens for the homeless
Dozens of families are living at a transformed hotel in Albuquerque, where the unhoused can find refuge and their kids have room to thrive.
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The political minefield of parental rights in New Mexico
As far-right conservatives make a bid for school board seats, disinformation is on the rise. Welcome to the culture wars.
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Turning guns into plowshares
Gun violence has taken a heavy toll on Albuquerque students. A school responds.