SANTA FE (KRQE) – In the first few hours lawmakers were allowed to pre-file bills for January’s legislative session, Rep. Paul Pacheco, R-Albuquerque wasted no time putting one of the new majority’s top priorities on the table.

He reintroduced a proposed repeal of the law allowing undocumented immigrants to get driver’s licenses. For the last four years, the proposal has failed to make it to Gov. Susana Martinez’s desk or, some years, even out of the state House.

But Pacheco appears confident at least one hurdle will be cleared.

“The fact that we have a change of power is going to help,” Pacheco said.

That change of power is a flood of new GOP reps elected in November, enough to give Republicans control of the chamber for the first time since 1954. On top of the long-simmering driver’s license issue, the GOP should have little problem getting a proposal to hold back third graders who don’t read at grade level and another to make New Mexico a right-to-work state out of the House.

“They’re going to get a lot of things out of the House that haven’t gotten out of the House before,” said Steve Terrell, capitol reporter for the Santa Fe New Mexican.

The real question will be whether the Senate will block the way.

“We’re going to be faced with a number of bills that have pent up over 60 years and we’re going to take every one of them seriously,” said Sen. Michael Padilla, an Albuquerque Democrat and majority whip.

Although Democrats currently hold a 25-17 edge, there are several more conservative Democrats who occasionally vote with Republicans on certain issues.

Terrell says the four key votes to watch could be Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming, Sen. Mary Kay Papen, D-Las Cruces, Sen. George Munoz, D-Gallup, and Sen. Clemente Sanchez, D-Grants.

If four Democrats flip and vote with Republicans, it would force a tie vote, one likely to be broken in favor of the GOP by Lt. Gov. John Sanchez. That’s a difficult, but not impossible obstacle for Republicans to overcome in many cases.

The result is likely a stalemate, meaning either compromise or gridlock. At least for now, both sides are talking about the former.

“The name of the game is compromise and we plan on working across the aisle,” said Rep. Nate Gentry, R-Albuquerque, the GOP’s pick for new majority leader.

“We’re going to have to learn to work together here,” said Padilla.

One possible area of compromise is on New Mexico’s minimum wage. Both sides say they want to raise it, although Gov. Martinez supports a far smaller increase than Democrats have been calling for.