From January 1997 until his retirement in December 2018, Carroll Leavell (October 23, 1936 – June 26, 2023) was a Republican senator from New Mexico who served as the district’s representative. From Eastern New Mexico University, Leavell received his BA.
When Republican Senator Billy McKibben of District 41 resigned from the Senate and the seat became available, Leavell was the only candidate for the Republican nomination on June 4, 1996, winning with 530 votes. On November 5, 1996, Leavell defeated Democratic contender Pat Darcy.
With no opposition, Leavell won both the November 2 general election with 2,749 votes and the 2000 Republican primary with 606 votes.
He received 1,309 votes to win the Republican primary on June 1, 2004, running unopposed once more.
Carroll Leavell: Former New Mexico state Sen. dies at age 86
Republican from Jal and former state senator Carroll Leavell passed away at the age of 86 on Monday morning.
As a member of the significant Senate Finance Committee and a prominent speaker on insurance-related topics at the Roundhouse, Leavell was an insurance agent by trade.
Having previously flown to Houston for cancer treatment, he was first elected in 1996 and resigned in December 2018 owing to health concerns.