1940 – 2026
Compiled By JUAN ESPINOSA
Roberto Mondragòn, 85, a former New Mexico Lieutenant Governor, musician, politician, political activists and preservationist of the state’s resources and cultural traditions died this week.
“I’m deeply saddened today by the passing of Roberto Mondragón, a legendary leader in the cultural and political life of New Mexico over generations,” Lt. Gov. Howie Morales wrote in a social media post. “… His accomplishments to preserve our Hispanic heritage in New Mexico will endure forever. Roberto found a life’s calling in both public service and love of the musical traditions of New Mexico.”
Details of Mondragón’s death are unclear. His death was announced Jan. 7.
Mondragón served as New Mexico Lieutenant Governor for two terms, 1971-1975 and again from 1979 to 1983. Between terms in the state’s No. 2 job, Mondragón directed the state Commission on Aging from 1975 to 1978.
Born July 27, 1940, Mondragón grew up in La Loma, a small Community in Guadalupe County near Anton Chico.
A 2021 legislative memorial honoring Mondragón described him as an “old-fashioned populist” and noted his commitment to “services for the aged, juvenile justice, migrant worker welfare and Hispanic civil rights.” He was also involved in water issues, in 2005 taking a role as the special projects coordinator for the Office of the State Engineer and Interstate Stream Commission.
Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller noted that while Mondragón was known for his political accomplishments, “many of us know him from his music and his writings.”
“We have lost a New Mexico original. I am deeply saddened to hear that New Mexico has lost legendary musician, storyteller, writer, activist and former Lieutenant Governor Roberto Mondragón. In politics, he was known as a generous State Senator in the 1960s, and then served as one of our most outspoken Lieutenant Governor’s for two terms in the 1970s.
“He worked tirelessly to keep Northern New Mexico’s Acequias flowing, and we thank him for devoting his life after politics to protecting the water, the land, and the soil,” Keller said. “His work, his wit, and his legacy will endure across Albuquerque and New Mexico. To paraphrase the words of our state song he made so famous, ‘El es Nuevo Mexico.’ ”
His years as Lieutenant Governor were marked with controversy when he spoke in favor of Chicanos and the Chicano Movement. In June 1971, the arrest of several Chicano teens for underage drinking at Albuquerque’s Roosevelt Park set off 30 hours of violence.
At a rally protesting police actions, Lt. Governor Mondragón spoke in favor of the people and stated that police brutality was a fact and a cause of the disturbances. Because of these words, he was attacked by other politicians and faced calls for his impeachment, wrote Jerome J. Chavez, in his University of New Mexico master’s thesis on the Black Berets of Albuquerque in the Chicano/a Movement.
“I know we have police brutality in Albuquerque,” Mondragón told a crowd at Roosevelt Park the day after. “Police brutality is not alleged—it is factual.”
In response to his comments, Albuquerque City Commission Chairman Charles Barnhart accused Mondragón of racism against white people.
Colorado Chicanos will remember that it was Mondragón who demanded a federal investigation of the slaying of Ricardo Falcón, 27, who was shot to death by a service station manager at Orogrande, N.M. in September 1972. Falcón was traveling to El Paso, Texas to attend the National Convention of La Raza Unida Party and was a founder of the United Mexican American Students (UMAS) at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
In 1972 he spoke at a Chicano Conference organized by the late Reyes Tijeriana at the newly opened Albuquerque Convention Center. He was a popular speaker at such events and usually brought a guitar along and was known to sing for his dinner.
Mondragón had a small role playing a town resident in The Milagro Beanfield War, Robert Redford’s 1988 movie filmed in Truchas about a battle over water in rural New Mexico. In the film, he performed with Los Reyes de Albuquerque.
But preserving New Mexico’s traditional ways was as important to the real Mondragón as to the people of fictional Milagro.
He is well known for the New Mexico Spanish Language State Song, “Asi Es Nuevo Mexico” which he recorded in 1971. He is also known for dedicating much of his life to the the preservation of maintaining Hispanic Heritage in New Mexico.
A little known piece of U.S. political trivia is that Mondragón received on delegate vote for the presidential nomination at the 1972 Democratic National Convention. However, his vote was mistakenly tallied for “Mao Tse-tung” because of a clerical error. Mao Tse-tung, got one vote, according to the official proceedings. Given the extreme liberalism of that gathering, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility, but in fact the vote for Mao was really a vote for New Mexico’s Lieutenant Governor Roberto Mondragón. In the chaos of that balloting (79 different people received votes, and the spectacle delayed George McGovern’s acceptance speech until 3 a.m.), the recording secretary misheard “Mondragón” as “Mao Tse-tung” and blithely moved on.