Candidate registration Aug. 27 for nonpartisan elections in New Mexico

County clerks in New Mexico are gearing up for the first round of clustered nonpartisan elections set for Nov. 5.

The new arrangement is part of a election reform bill approved by the New Mexico Legislature in 2018 that will use the first Tuesday in November in odd-numbered years for nonpartisan elections involving special districts, school boards, colleges and municipal boards.

Aug. 27 is the day to sign up to run in any of those elections. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., candidates can submit their papers to the county clerk in the proper jurisdiction where they reside, according to information from election officials.

In addition to the listed positions up for election, questions will be on the ballot, but the local entities have until Sept. 2 to send them to the county clerks.

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Anyone interested in becoming a candidate on the ballot should go to the Secretary of State website www.sos.state.nm.us and click on the link for interested candidates, which has a candidate guide that will tell them what, when and where they need to file, according to Shannan Hemphill, Lincoln County Bureau of Elections Clerk.

The forms they need are also on that website, she said. Positions open in each county also will be listed.

"If they have any questions, they are more than welcome to contact us directly," she said of candidates living in Lincoln County.

Why reform?

The principal reasoning behind the consolidation was to create an election day that voters were aware of and that was consistent over time, rather than having multiple, small elections throughout the year, election officials said. Every November, voters can anticipate an election, whether it is an even or odd-numbered year.

All of the school board, municipal and special district elections historically have low turnout, publish separately, conduct separately and cost separately, they pointed out.  The law allowed municipalities to opt out of the new arrangement, which Ruidoso did.

Absentee voting will start on Oct. 8 and run until Nov.1. Anyone interested in voting absentee can contact their county clerk's office for an absentee application or go to nmvote.org and complete an online absentee ballot application request.

"We will be handling this election just like a primary or general so that it is easier for the voters and hopefully there will be less confusion," Hemphill said.

Positions in Lincoln County

That means in Lincoln County voting will occur from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at any of the six voting centers in Lincoln County.

Voters living in all precincts can cast ballots at any of the six sites. They are Corona Village Hall, 461 Main St., Corona; Lincoln County Courthouse, 300 Central Ave., Carrizozo; Capitan Municipal Schools, 150 Forest St., Capitan; Ruidoso Convention Center, 111 Sierra Blanca Drive, Ruidoso; Ruidoso Downs Zia Center, 26337 US 70, Ruidoso Downs; and Hondo Valley Public School, 111 Don Pablo Lane, Hondo.  

In Lincoln County, positions up for election include governing board in the village of  Corona, the town of Carrizozo, the Carrizozo School District, the Capitan Municipal School District, the Hondo Valley Public School District, the Coronal School District and the Ruidoso Municipal School District.

Other positions are open on the Eastern New Mexico University-Ruidoso branch community college, the Alto Lakes Water and Sanitation District, the Sun Valley Water and Sanitation District, the Alpine Water and Sanitation District, the Claunch-Pinto Soil and Water Conservation District, the Chaves Soil and Water Conservation District, Upper Hondo Soil and Water District and the Carrizozo Soil and Water Conservation District.

More:Political bug? Take a first bite with nonpartisan elections November 2019

More:Lincoln County commissioner with short straw could serve 6 years

More:Three of five towns in Lincoln County opt-in for clustered nonpartisan election

Declaration of Intent to be a Write-in Candidate for the regular local election should be filed between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept.3.

Reporter Dianne Stallings can be contacted at dstallings@ruidosonews.com.