| | After the death of incumbent Democrat senator Dennis Chavez, Gov. Mechem appointed himself to fill the vacant seat. | | After the death of incumbent Democrat senator Dennis Chavez, Gov. Mechem appointed himself to fill the vacant seat. |
| − | Mechem was one of six Senate Republicans (the others being [[Barry Goldwater]] of [[Arizona]], [[Bourke Hickenlooper]] of [[Iowa]], [[Milward Simpson]] of [[Wyoming]], [[Norris Cotton]] of [[New Hampshire]], and [[John Tower]] of [[Texas]]) who voted against the final passage of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]].<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/88-1964/s409 HR. 7152. PASSAGE.]. ''GovTrack.us''. Retrieved May 9, 2021.</ref> He ran for a full Senate term that year, losing in the general election to Joseph M. Montoya by nine percentage points.<ref>[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=29031 NM US Senate]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved May 9, 2021.</ref> | + | Mechem was one of six Senate Republicans (the others being [[Barry Goldwater]] of [[Arizona]], [[Bourke Hickenlooper]] of [[Iowa]], [[Milward Simpson]] of [[Wyoming]], [[Norris Cotton]] of [[New Hampshire]], and [[John Tower]] of [[Texas]]) who voted against the final passage of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]].<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/88-1964/s409 HR. 7152. PASSAGE.]. ''GovTrack.us''. Retrieved May 9, 2021.</ref> He asserted that his objections were towards the sections of the legislation regarding fair employment and public accommodations.<ref>[https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0619.html Civil Rights Bill Passed, 73-27; Johnson Urges All To Comply; Dirksen Berates Goldwater]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved May 23, 2021.</ref> He ran for a full Senate term that year, losing in the general election to Joseph M. Montoya by nine percentage points.<ref>[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=29031 NM US Senate]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved May 9, 2021.</ref> |
| | He missed 10% of all roll call votes during his short Senate tenure.<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/edwin_mechem/407612 Sen. Edwin Mechem]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved May 9, 2021.</ref> | | He missed 10% of all roll call votes during his short Senate tenure.<ref>[https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/edwin_mechem/407612 Sen. Edwin Mechem]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved May 9, 2021.</ref> |