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A long-time New Mexico community organizer is one of several women who have put the state on the map this year for having the largest percentage of women serving as lawmakers.

State Representative Sarah Silva, a Democrat who represents Dona Ana County and a portion of Otero County, wants lawmakers to address infrastructure in Chaparral, the state's largest unincorporated community, where she said there are long waits for an ambulance, limited fire fighting capabilities and no animal control agency.

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"It has anywhere between 20,000 and 26,000 people, it's been growing significantly since 2020 and there's no local government," she said. "So, I've been working with local officials to try and secure $10 million for a public safety facility."

Chaparral is officially part of the Las Cruces metro area, but the 60-square mile region is primarily a bedroom community for the neighboring city of El Paso, Texas.

During President Donald Trump's first term, Silva said, he expressed an appetite for going after immigrants - and she thinks he now has more tools to make that happen. She said she thinks New Mexico's advocacy groups are doing a good job of educating immigrants about their rights, but added that more people need to resist what she called "obeying in advance."

"We need more school administrators, we need more sheriffs, we need more neighbors, we need more churches and congregations standing up for the immigrant community," she said. "Many, many more of us need to start caring and then putting that care into action."

Silva also wants lawmakers to update New Mexico's shield law that protects news reporters - which she said hasn't been revised since 1978.

"So, the definition of a journalist is very outdated," she said, "as is the definition of mediums of communication - that doesn't include anything involving the internet or electronic communication."