By Leah Carliner, CQ Staff

In New Mexico’s 2nd District, it’s hard to tell that a primary election has yet to take place, as Republican Steve Pearce has already dubbed himself the front-runner over freshman Rep. Harry Teague , a Democrat.

Pearce announced last month that he would be trying to win back his former House seat, dispelling rumors that he may seek the governorship. He represented the district — which includes Las Cruces and Roswell — for three terms, but declined to run for re-election in 2008 in order to run for an open Senate seat. Pearce won the primary, but lost badly in the general election to then-Rep. Tom Udall .

Though Teague defeated the GOP candidate, Ed Tinsley, by 12 percentage points, the district narrowly voted in favor of John McCain in the presidential election. The National Republican Congressional Committee has already listed Teague among 80 vulnerable Democrats.

Local observers have commented on the shrewd timing of Pearce’s announcement to seek re-election — less than two weeks after Teague’s vote in support of the Democrats’ energy bill. New Mexican pollster Brian Sanderoff says he doesn’t expect the vote to sit well with voters in a district he describes as “gas and oil country.”

Democrats have had a hard time winning in the 2nd District, Sanderoff said, because the eastern part of the district is populated with conservative gas and oil voters. Teague was the first Democrat to win in almost 30 years, and his success can largely be attributed to his history in the oil industry. He dropped out of high school at age 17 to take a job in the oilfields for $1.50 an hour, and he made his own fortune when he started Teaco Energy Services, an oilfield service company.

Teague has maintained a relatively conservative record; according to a CQ analysis of House votes, he has sided with the Democrats 84 percent of the time — the 24th lowest among House Democrats. His vote in favor of the energy bill — with “cap-and-trade” provisions that conservatives contend are anti-oil — could be an issue that will remain on the trail throughout the long campaign, says Heath Haussamen, a former reporter at the Las Cruces Sun-News whose Web site focuses on New Mexico politics.

“I think there’s a lot of energy on the right over the cap-and-trade,” Haussamen said, adding that he expects Pearce to tap into that energy for as long as he can. In the 2008 election, Teague was able to portray himself as a working-class candidate due to his lack of higher education, but Haussamen said Pearce could use this vote as an example of Teague’s lack of intelligence.

The measure that Teague eventually stood behind included amendments that he sponsored to protect small refiners and electric co-ops from some of the costs associated with the bill — an important inclusion for his constituents, many of whom would have otherwise seen a hike in fees. The Senate is expected to vote on the bill in September.

While the House is in recess, Teague has been touring the district, and his staff has been holding “mobile office hours” to field constituent feedback and offer guidance in dealing with federal agencies. Sara Schreiber, Teague’s communications director, said such constituent services are not out of the ordinary and are unrelated to the 2010 election.

When asked if constituents were commenting on Teague’s cap-and-trade vote in particular, Schreiber said that the subject matter is always an important one for the 2nd District. “Energy is always on the minds of New Mexicans,” she noted.

Since his formal announcement in Las Cruces last month, Pearce has also been traveling the district, frequenting local community events. So far, no other Republican challenger has officially entered the race. “Our strategy is just to get back in front of the people,” Pearce said.