{{redirect|Denish|the athlete|Denish Das}}{{short description|American politician|bot=PearBOT 5}} {{Infobox officeholder |name = Diane Denish |image = Diane Denish.jpg |office = 28th [[Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico]] |governor = [[Bill Richardson]] |term_start = January 1, 2003 |term_end = January 1, 2011 |predecessor = [[Walter Dwight Bradley|Walter Bradley]] |successor = [[John Sanchez]] |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1949|3|7}} |birth_place = [[Hobbs, New Mexico|Hobbs]], [[New Mexico]], U.S. |death_date = |death_place = |party = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] |spouse = Herb Denish |children = 3, including [[Suzanne Schreiber]] |education = [[University of New Mexico|University of New Mexico, Albuquerque]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]]) }} '''Diane Daniels Denish''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|ɛ|n|ɪ|ʃ}} {{Respell|DEN|ish}};<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2yjelm|title=Lt. Governor Diane Denish for Bill Richardson|accessdate=1 October 2020}}</ref> born March 7, 1949) is an American politician, who was the 28th [[lieutenant governor of New Mexico]] from 2003 to 2011 under Governor [[Bill Richardson]]. Denish was the first woman to hold that post.
There was early speculation that Denish would run in the [[2008 United States Senate election in New Mexico|2008 election]] for the [[New Mexico]] Senate seat vacated by [[Pete Domenici]],<ref>[http://kob.com/article/stories/S217380.shtml?cat=500 Field open for NM Senate seat]. Retrieved October 11, 2007. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502223625/http://kob.com/article/stories/S217380.shtml?cat=500 |date=May 2, 2008 }}</ref> but she ruled out running. She [[2010 New Mexico gubernatorial election|ran for governor in 2010]] and was defeated by [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] nominee [[Susana Martinez]] on November 2, 2010.
==Personal life== Diane Denish was born March 7, 1949, in [[Hobbs, New Mexico]]. Her father, [[Jack Daniels (New Mexico politician)|Jack Daniels]], was a prominent New Mexico politician and the brother of [[Bill Daniels]]. She earned her BA from the [[University of New Mexico]] in 1971. Prior to entering politics, she owned and operated The Target Group, a small business specializing in market research and fund-raising for nonprofit organizations. Denish enjoys cooking in her [[leisure time]]. <ref>[http://www.votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=43553 Lieutenant Governor Diane D. Denish (NM).] ''[[Project Vote Smart]].''</ref>
==Political career== Denish has served as Chair of the [[Democratic Party of New Mexico|New Mexico Democratic Party]], as well as Chair of New Mexico First and Chair of the New Mexico Community Foundation.
Denish has been appointed by three New Mexico Governors to serve in numerous capacities, including as a member of the Board of Regents at [[New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology|New Mexico Tech University]], as Chair of the New Mexico Commission on the Status of Women, and as a member of the National Advisory Board of the [[Small Business Administration]] under President [[Bill Clinton]]. In 1998, she was the Lieutenant Governor candidate on the ticket with [[Martin Chavez]], losing the race 54%-45% to then Governor [[Gary Johnson]].
In her capacity as [[Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico|lieutenant governor]], Denish supported legislation to increase [[Microcredit|microlending]] funds and place tighter regulations on [[Payday loan|payday lenders]]. She also supported legislation to establish voluntary [[Early childhood education|pre-kindergarten]] enrollment for all New Mexico four-year-olds and legislation to combat [[methamphetamine]] manufacturers and dealers who target children.<ref>Jennings, Trip. [http://newmexicoindependent.com/10987/denish-is-mum-on-her-likely-transition-to-governor Diane Denish is mum on her likely transition to governor’s office.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721190036/http://newmexicoindependent.com/10987/denish-is-mum-on-her-likely-transition-to-governor |date=2011-07-21 }} ''The New Mexico Independent.''</ref>
In addition to her ex officio position as President of the [[New Mexico Senate]], Denish served as chair of the Children's Cabinet, chair of the Mortgage Finance Authority, chair of the Insure New Mexico! Council, chair of the Health Care for New Mexicans Council, and co-chair of the New Mexico Commission for Community Volunteerism.
===2010 New Mexico gubernatorial bid=== {{Main|2010 New Mexico gubernatorial election}} Denish began preparing for her gubernatorial bid early and in 2007 had already amassed a [[war chest]] of over $1 million.<ref name="war chest">Nash, Kate. [http://www.abqtrib.com/news/2007/nov/07/new-mexico-lt-gov-diane-denishs-war-chest-exceeds-/ New Mexico Lt. Gov. Diane Denish's war chest exceeds $1 million.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412055423/http://www.abqtrib.com/news/2007/nov/07/new-mexico-lt-gov-diane-denishs-war-chest-exceeds-/ |date=2008-04-12 }} ''The Albuquerque Tribune.'' November 7, 2007.</ref> She ran unopposed in the Democratic primary and was the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee for [[Governor of New Mexico]].<ref>[http://www.thestatecolumn.com/blog/2010/06/diane-denish-statement-following-new-mexico-primary/ Diane Denish Statement Following New Mexico Primary.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100607014645/http://www.thestatecolumn.com/blog/2010/06/diane-denish-statement-following-new-mexico-primary/ |date=2010-06-07 }} ''The State Column.'' June 2, 2010.</ref>
Denish was defeated in the general election on November 2, 2010 by [[Doña Ana County, New Mexico|Doña Ana County]] District Attorney [[Susana Martinez]], who became New Mexico's first elected female governor, and as well as the first elected [[Hispanic]] woman to become governor in U.S. history. The Denish vs. Martinez race and the simultaneous [[Jari Askins]] vs. [[Mary Fallin]] race in Oklahoma were only the third and fourth cases of woman vs. woman gubernatorial races in U.S. history. The other two cases being the 1986 Nebraska Gubernatorial Election between '''[[Kay A. Orr|Kay Orr]]''' and [[Helen Boosalis]], and the 2002 Hawaii Gubernatorial Election between '''[[Linda Lingle]]''' and [[Mazie Hirono]]
==Awards== Denish has received the PNM Entrepreneur Advocate of the Year Award (2006), the Leadership New Mexico Distinguished Alumnus Award (2006), the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., Community Service Award (2005), the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce Excellence in Education Award (2005), the WIPP Women Impacting Public Policy New Mexico Legislative Leadership Award (2004), the Hispanic Women’s Council Las Primeras Award, and the National Child Health Advocate Award (2005).
==Controversy== In March of 2024, Denish faced allegations of unfairly using her political connections to undermine efforts by her neighborhood to create a childhood playground in a park close to Denish's house. The playground had seeming broad support from the community, with over two thirds of those writing in about the issue voicing their support. Denish admitted to having called NM Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham to request-- successfully-- that funds for the playground be vetoed. When the Governor was asked about why she'd vetoed the park's funding, she stated she'd been informed there was not broad community support. Reasons Denish cited for having requested the veto included her desire for unobstructed views and the belief that children "don’t necessarily need a slide or swing" because they can play creatively without them.<ref>KRQE News. Garate, Jessica. [https://www.krqe.com/news/politics-government/how-a-former-new-mexico-leader-used-her-power-to-halt-a-playground/ How a former New Mexico leader used her power to halt a playground.] March 26, 2024 </ref>
==See also== *[[List of female lieutenant governors in the United States]] {{Portal|Biography}} {{-}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.ltgov.state.nm.us/ New Mexico Office of the Lieutenant Governor Diane Denish] ''official state site'' *[https://web.archive.org/web/20101028214217/http://www.dianedenish.com/ Diane Denish for Governor] ''official campaign site'' *{{C-SPAN|57818}}
{{s-start}} {{s-off}} {{s-bef|before=[[Walter Dwight Bradley|Walter Bradley]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico]]|years=2003–2011}} {{s-aft|after=[[John Sanchez]]}} |- {{s-ppo}} {{s-bef|before=[[Bill Richardson]]}} {{s-ttl|title=[[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee for [[List of governors of New Mexico|Governor of New Mexico]]|years=[[2010 New Mexico gubernatorial election|2010]]}} {{s-aft|after=[[Gary King (politician)|Gary King]]}} {{s-end}}
{{Lieutenant Governors of New Mexico}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Denish, Diane}} [[Category:1949 births]] [[Category:Lieutenant governors of New Mexico]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:New Mexico Democrats]] [[Category:New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology]] [[Category:People from Hobbs, New Mexico]] [[Category:State political party chairs of New Mexico]] [[Category:University of New Mexico alumni]] [[Category:2000 United States presidential electors]] [[Category:Women in New Mexico politics]] [[Category:21st-century American women politicians]] [[Category:21st-century New Mexico politicians]]