Failed New Mexico GOP candidate sentenced to 80 years for organizing drive-by shootings at Democrats’ homes

A wannabe Republican representative in New Mexico was sentenced to 80 years in prison for organizing shootings at Democrats’ homes after he was easily crushed in an election for a state House seat.

Solomon Peña, 42, originally ran for the Albuquerque-based house district in 2022, but was swiftly defeated by incumbent Democrat Miguel Garcia after securing a mere 26% of the vote.

Still, Peña asserted the election was “rigged.”

“I didn’t lose nada,” he posted on his X account on Jan. 2.

The sore loser quickly formed a “sophisticated scheme” targeting elected officials in the state, US District Court Judge Kea Riggs said during his sentencing.

He was arrested in January 2023 after a tense standoff with a SWAT team and accused of hiring four men to shoot at the homes of Bernalillo County Commissioners Adriann Barboa and Debbie O’Malley and state Sens. Linda Lopez and Moe Maestas, who are all registered Democrats.

Peña was found guilty in March for recruiting a man and his son to target the Democratic officials. He was additionally convicted of trying to convince fellow inmates he was in jail with while awaiting trial to kill his codefendants.

As the “ringleader” of the operation, Peña tagged along on the final drive-by to Lopez’s, less than a day before he was nabbed by the SWAT team.

The heavily armed men opened fire on the senator’s house, sending multiple bullets flying through Lopez’s 10-year-old daughter’s bedroom window.

No injuries were reported, but Lopez testified Wednesday that her children still suffer from mental health issues spurred by the shooting, including anxiety and depression, the Source New Mexico reported.

“The shooting of our home shattered what I was trying to form for my children,” Lopez said.

Peña’s attorneys spoke on his behalf and asserted that he would be appealing the conviction.

Riggs, a Trump appointee, said that Peña would have likely continued on his violent rampage if he hadn’t been captured by authorities — all because of his “ego” and inability to “believe that [he] lost an election.”

Peña, an ex-con, previously served seven years in prison for theft. He was also ordered to pay a $250,000 fine.

Over the last year, acts of political violence have spiked countrywide.

In June, Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman and her husband were assassinated at her home by deranged madman Vance Boelter, who dressed up as a police officer to trick the couple into opening their door.

In April, an unemployed mechanic set Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s home on fire while his family was asleep inside. The arsonist later told police that he despised the governor and would’ve beaten him with a hammer himself if given the opportunity.