New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez made her first appearance on the national stage Wednesday night. 

She started with a story of her path to success. 

"Sometimes you pay the price for standing up," Martinez said. "When I was a young prosecutor, I got called to testify against my boss. I could've backed down but I didn't. I stood up to him and he fired me for it. So I took him on. I ran against him for district attorney and I beat him by a landslide. I fear some of our leaders today have lost the courage to stand up." 

Many have said Martinez's presence at the Republican National Convention played an important role in the GOP campaign. She's the first Hispanic female governor in history. That's the kind of support that many have said the Republican Party needs. 

Martinez talked about reasons for supporting Mitt Romney. 

"Too many Americans are out of work and our debt is out of control," Martinez said. "In many ways, Mitt Romney and I are very different. Different starts in life. Different paths to leadership. Different cultures. But we've each shared the promise of America." 

Martinez, at one time, was a Democrat. She told the story of what was supposed to be a casual lunch with Republicans, years ago. That lunch changed her role in politics. 

"We talked about many issues like welfare," Martinez said. "Is it a way of life or a hand up? We talked about the size of government - how much it should tax families and small businesses? And when I left that lunch, we got in the car and I looked at (my husband) Chuck and said, 'I'll be damned, we're Republicans.'" 

Tonight she talked about what she called President Barack Obama's failures, and she endorsed the person she said will turn this country's economy around. 

"We must stand up and support Mitt Romney," Martinez said. Her final comments were followed by a loud applause.

KFOX14 spoke with some borderland residents to get local reaction. 

“I really don’t think she has proven herself to be a representative of the Hispanic community, especially the women,” said Salvador Salceda of the lower valley. 

Jose Ortega of central El Paso disagrees.  He says “She’s actually someone to look forward to.  Like somebody to look up to.  I think she will have a lot of followers of Hispanic people.”

If you have a story that you feel deserves media attention, contact Ric Dupont at ric.dupont@kfoxtv.com.