Charter change proposal spawns partisan debate

It’s a simple change – just one word in the City Charter.

But the ballot measure before Albuquerque voters this month has triggered plenty of partisan debate.

On one side are Democrats and union groups who say it makes sense to require municipal candidates to get at least 50 percent of the vote to win office. The requirement is now 40 percent.

	Pros and cons

On the other side are Republicans and business groups who say raising the required percentage will result in more runoff elections, straining the city budget and drawing a small turnout.

The question is now in the hands of Albuquerque voters, who have until March 11 to return their ballots to the city clerk.

County Commission Chairwoman Maggie Hart Stebbins, a Democrat who’s campaigned for the measure, said the 50 percent requirement makes for good government.

“From a purely political science point of view, you want elected officials who have support from a majority of voters,” she said in an interview. “I think there is a weakness in the system if you have someone who becomes mayor or city councilor with 30 or 40 percent of the vote.”

Steve Kush, executive director of the county Republican Party, said increasing the requirement will result in costly runoff elections. That money is better spent on police officers or firetrucks, he said.

“In this economy,” Kush said, “let’s face it: We have to count every penny and, quite frankly, those pennies are better spent on public safety than a select few deciding who our mayors and councilors are.”

Wide field

The debate is a product of Albuquerque’s nonpartisan election system. Candidates’ party labels don’t appear on the ballot, and there are no primary elections to winnow the field.

That means a wide field of candidates, usually somewhere between three and 10, compete in mayoral elections. The candidate with the most votes wins, as long as that person has more than 40 percent of the vote. If not, there’s a runoff election between the top two candidates.

No Albuquerque mayor has reached 50 percent in the first round of voting in decades, if ever.

In 2009, Richard Berry, a Republican, won the Mayor’s Office with about 44 percent of the vote. He defeated two Democrats.

In 2005, Martin Chávez, a Democrat, won with 47 percent, beating another Democrat, a Republican and a fourth, lesser-known candidate.

In the two mayoral cycles before that, the city didn’t have any runoff requirement because of a legal challenge. Chávez won in 2001 with 31 percent, and Jim Baca, also a Democrat, won in 1997 with 29 percent.

Before that, runoffs were in place and fairly common, with a 40 percent requirement. The last mayoral runoff came in 1993, when Chávez narrowly defeated former Gov. David Cargo, a Republican.

Berry, who is seeking re-election, opposes the change to 50 percent.

“There are many critical needs in our city,” he said, “from police cars and firetrucks, to senior centers and libraries. I would rather see taxpayer dollars used for these critical needs rather than millions going to a long series of special elections over the years that most likely won’t change the final outcome of who is elected.”

A lock for Democrats?

Some observers see this year’s proposal as a way to make re-election more difficult for Berry. About 46 percent of Albuquerque’s registered voters are Democrats and 31 percent are Republican.

Brian Sanderoff, president of Research & Polling Inc., which does surveys for the Journal, said it’s difficult to predict how changing the runoff requirement would shape the politics at City Hall.

He noted that Albuquerque’s last two mayors, Berry and Chávez, drew “significant support” across party lines when they won.

The impact of the new rule “would depend on the number and mix of candidates running for mayor in the initial race,” Sanderoff said. “It would also depend on whether the candidates have a broad base of support or just a narrow support base among the electorate.”

Timothy Krebs, a University of New Mexico professor who studies urban politics, said it’s telling that Democrats support the idea, while Republicans don’t.

“I think the hope of Democrats is that it will, in effect, lock in Democrats as the choice,” he said.

But he pointed out that Republicans do win mayoral races in Democratic cities, including New York and Los Angeles.

“A lot depends on who that Democrat or Republican is” in the race, Krebs said.

Turnout would be among the factors in play, he said. Runoff elections typically draw smaller turnout, he said, but the competitiveness of the race would also affect participation.

And it’s not clear who would be favored in a lower-turnout election. Republicans are the more reliable voters, he said.

On the other hand, a strong field operation aided by union groups could help Democrats.

Turnout in mayoral elections is already fairly low. About 26 percent of the city’s voters participated in the 2009 election.

In any case, Hart Stebbins said good government, not partisanship, is the motive. She pointed out that Berry has polled strongly across the spectrum.

Furthermore, she said, candidates for statewide office go through two elections because they compete in primaries.

“This is just another step in that process to make sure our elected city officials represent a majority of the population – that the people who are elected have a mandate from the voters,” Hart Stebbins said.

City Councilor Don Harris, a Republican, is the last municipal candidate to compete in a runoff, which he won in 2005. It’s difficult to knock on doors when it’s cold and dark outside, he said, and it takes time away from family and work.

“Ultimately, it’s up to the voters, but as a candidate, it was difficult and created a hardship,” he said.
— This article appeared on page A1 of the Albuquerque Journal