Early voting to begin Tuesday, as NM voters set to select local leaders

SANTA FE — Ready or not, a new voting season has officially arrived in New Mexico.

The first phase of early voting starts Tuesday in Bernalillo County, with absentee ballots being sent out to voters and in-person voting opening at the Downtown Clerk’s Annex, 1500 Lomas NW.

Expanded early voting will then begin on Oct. 18, and will end three days before Election Day on Nov. 4.

Similar timelines are also in place in other counties around New Mexico, as voters in many cities and towns — including Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Roswell and Taos — will pick their mayors. City council, municipal judge and school board seats are also up for election.

While no statewide or federal offices are up for election this year, the local races in many communities have drawn close scrutiny and prompted hearty debate about crime, homelessness and other issues.

In Albuquerque, incumbent Tim Keller holds a lead in his bid for an unprecedented third consecutive term as mayor, though many voters recently said they were undecided on who to support in a crowded field.

Meanwhile, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has issued endorsements in both the Santa Fe and Taos mayoral elections, though it’s unclear how much weight the governor’s backing will carry.

Bernalillo County Clerk Michelle Kavanaugh said Monday local elections have historically featured a lower turnout than statewide elections, especially in presidential election years.

But she said she expects turnout levels of registered voters this year to easily surpass the 23% turnout level in Bernalillo County in the 2023 local election, in large part due to voter interest in Albuquerque’s mayoral election.

There are currently about 362,000 eligible voters in Albuquerque — or about 83% of all registered voters in Bernalillo County.

Kavanaugh, who took office at the start of this year, also said early voting has increased in popularity in recent years, as some voters seek to avoid the possibility of long lines on Election Day.

While elections officials nationwide have faced claims of voting fraud and irregularities, the county clerk said she has vowed to ensure local elections remain secure, efficient and transparent to the public.

“I think the more people understand the system, the more they trust it,” she told the Journal.

Other election officials around the state have also been busy preparing for the start of early voting.

Anna Martinez, deputy Taos County clerk, said this year’s local elections are keeping the county clerk’s small four-person staff on their toes as early voting kicks off for an election that typically sees an 18% to 20% voter turnout rate.

“We’ve been doing this for a long time,” Martinez said. “I’ve been doing this for 23 years, we have a timeline we follow and we just take it as it comes because you just never know.”

In addition to the town of Taos, candidates are also vying for elected office in Taos County in towns and villages including Questa, Red River and Taos Ski Valley.

New Mexico recently became one of eight states that have adopted a permanent absentee voter list, which allows any voters who sign up to get an absentee ballot in the mail without having to request one during each election cycle.

As of Monday, there were 21,999 registered voters on the permanent absentee voter list in Bernalillo County alone, according to the county clerk’s office.

Meanwhile, elections for municipal offices, school boards and other local bodies used to be held on different dates around New Mexico. But the elections were consolidated under the Local Election Act that was approved by state lawmakers in 2018 in an attempt to increase turnout and reduce administrative costs.

County clerks now run the consolidated local elections, which follow state law for early voting timelines, absentee voting procedures and more.

However, not all cities around the state have opted in.

The list of New Mexico municipalities that have not decided to opt in to the Local Election Act and still hold their elections in March include Rio Rancho, Clovis, Artesia, Santa Rosa and Española, according to the Secretary of State’s office.

Journal staff writer John Miller contributed to this report.