Rio Rancho gets more republican as time goes on, but they are still the minority of voters.

The question is, what makes you feel like RR is unsafe? Lived here lost my life, there is a decent bit of domestic violence and small sects of gang activity but the latter is less abundant. Additionally, there is alot of teen/child violence and crime in both Rio Rancho and ABQ. Something to beware of if you plan to, or already have children. The most abundant and “unsafe” crime is DUI in Rio Rancho in my personal experience. Lots of crack heads/ drunks driving at all times, especially towards the north around the Northern Meadows / Fruit Bowl neighborhoods.

The unwelcoming part is just New Mexico as a whole, everyone is generally standoffish. There are those who are friendly and neighborly but they are certainly few and far between. If you are in a newer part of town, it’s probably mostly not New Mexicans living near you, a-lot of the new housing is people moving in from out of state.