[1] The New Mexico Constitution is unique in the U.S. for recognizing the state's cultural and ethnic diversity;[4] it reaffirms the rights of Hispanos and Spanish speakers under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which granted U.S. citizenship and various legal protections to former Mexican nationals, and prohibits discrimination based on an "inability to speak, read or write the English or Spanish languages.

In the lead up to the Compromise of 1850, statehood was promoted on the grounds that it would stave off Texan encroachment on the eastern section of the territory.

In the 1870s, the political and business elites of the Santa Fe Ring championed statehood on the assumption that they would govern any newly admitted states.

By the late 1880s, the influx of American "Anglos" brought with it more supporters for New Mexico's admission into the Union; for their part, the Nuevomexicanos—those descended from pre-United States annexation—had long been ambivalent or divided on the question of statehood, typically on the grounds that it would erode their culture and heritage or, in the case of elite families, undermine their long-established social, political, and economic standing.

Lawyers reportedly constituted the chief occupational group, at 35 members; the overwhelming majority of representatives had political experience.

The convention addressed several longstanding issues that had faced the territory, most notably the enforcement of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which, among other matters, governed the rights, privileges, and immunities of former Mexican citizens living under U.S. administration; this included granting U.S. citizenship unconditionally and protecting religious, linguistic, and cultural heritage.

[4] The provisions of the treaty established a paternalistic relationship between the U.S. and its newly adopted citizens, which in turn reflected widespread prejudices against New Mexicans; the territory's large population of Hispanic and indigenous Americans, many of whom did not speak English nor practice Protestantism, were perceived as too "alien" to be inducted into the American republic.

[1] A minority of delegates embraced several social and political reforms of the contemporary Progressive Era,[11] such as prohibitions of convict labor and debtor's prison and guaranteed compensation to railroad workers for injuries suffered due to company negligence.

[1] The Democrats were primarily concerned with the difficulty of the amendment process, the unequal distribution of the legislature, and the lack of provisions addressing recall votes.