The Raton Range
Sept. 9, 2026 | 6:22 p.m. MST
RATON, N.M. — Bill Cody Ayon has worn more than one uniform during a career built around military service and law enforcement. Now the Bronze Star recipient is asking Colfax County voters to put another badge on his chest: sheriff.
Ayon, the Republican nominee for Colfax County sheriff, faces Democrat Nolberto “Beto” Dominguez Jr. in the November general election. Official New Mexico Secretary of State results show Ayon received 793 votes in the Republican primary, while Dominguez received 1,127 votes in the Democratic primary.
But as the campaign moves toward November, The Raton Range has begun examining information provided by a source concerning a reported disturbance involving Ayon during his time in the area.
At this point, the Range is not reporting the allegation as established fact.
The newspaper is seeking incident reports, personnel records, findings, disciplinary records, and other public documents that could independently establish what happened, when it happened, who was involved, and whether any official action resulted.
Ayon will also be allowed to respond to the information uncovered during that investigation.
That distinction matters.
A sheriff carries enormous authority. Voters deserve to know the accomplishments of the person asking for that authority, but they also deserve straight answers about significant incidents in a candidate’s professional history. The purpose of the investigation is not to manufacture a scandal. It is to establish the record.
And Ayon has a substantial record of service worth examining in its entirety.
Ayon served in both the U.S. Navy and New Mexico Army National Guard, ultimately reaching the rank of captain. According to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, he served with the 2nd Battalion, 200th Infantry in Baghdad during the Iraq War and retired from military service in 2016 after 24 years.
His service earned him the Bronze Star Medal. Contemporary reporting from Osage News identified Ayon as a Bronze Star recipient following his Iraq deployment, and a later profile by the Deming Headlight also documented the award.
His military story also carries a piece of Native American history.
Ayon is Tsistsistas, or Southern Cheyenne. During his Iraq deployment, he had a powwow drum shipped to Camp Cropper so Native American service members stationed there could gather, sing and maintain a connection to their cultures thousands of miles from home. That drum was later donated to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, where its history is preserved in the museum’s collection.
That is not a footnote. It is an extraordinary chapter in Ayon’s life.
But military decorations, community involvement, and campaign biographies cannot substitute for scrutiny of a candidate seeking one of the most powerful elected law-enforcement positions in Colfax County.
Neither can allegations substitute for evidence.
That is where the Range’s investigation stands today.
We have information.
We are asking questions.
We are requesting the records.
And we are going to follow those records wherever they lead.
If the documents clear up the questions surrounding the reported disturbance, readers will know that. If they reveal disciplinary action or other significant findings, readers will know that too.
Ayon’s service to his country deserves recognition. His candidacy for sheriff deserves scrutiny.
Both can be true.
And Colfax County voters deserve the complete story before they cast their ballots.
