1 IN TH E SUPREME COURT O F THE ST ATE OF NEW MEXICO

2 Opinion N um ber: 3 F ili ng D at e: F eb ru ar y 7, 201 9 4 S- 1- SC -3 7227 5 UNITE NEW MEXI CO, 6 HEAT HER NORDQUI ST, 7 ELE CT LI BERTY PAC, 8 LIBER TARIAN PA RTYOF NE W MEX ICO, 9 an d REPUBLI CAN PAR TY OF NEW ME XICO 10 P et iti one rs , 11 v. 12 MAGGI E TOUL OUSE O LI VER, 13 Secr etary of St ate of N ew Mexico 14 R es pond en t. 15 ORI GI NAL PROCEEDI NG 16 Pei fer, Han so n & Mu ll in s, P.A. 17 Carte r B. Harrison IV 18 Alb uq ue rque , NM 19 SaucedoChavez, P. C. 20 Ch ri sto phe r Sa

uc ed o 21 Alb uq ue rque , NM1 W es te rn Agri cu lt ur e, Res ou rce a nd Bu si ne ss Adv oc at es , LLP

2 A
. Bl ai r D unn 3 Alb uq ue rque , NM 4 for Pe tition ers 5 He ctor H . B alderas, Attorney Ge neral 6 Sean M. Cunniff, A ssistant Attorney Ge neral 7 Dy lan Kenneth L ange, A ssistant Attorney Ge neral 8 Jane B. Yohalem , S pecial A ssistant Attorney Ge neral 9 San ta Fe, NM 10 fo r Re spon de nt 11 He ndricks Law 12 Mi ch ae l E
. H en dr ic ks 13 Alb uq ue rque , NM 14 for A m ici Curiae 15 G ing er

G ri de r, Re p. P au l B an dy , Re p. Jim m ie C. H al l, Re p. Jam es T ow nse nd, 16 Rep. Gr eg Nibert, R ep. R icky L. Little, Rep. Bob W ooley , S enator Stuart I ngle, 17 Se na tor

Mark Mo or es , S en at or

Cl if f Pi rt le , S en at or

S te ve n P
. N ev ill e, S en at or 18 W ill iam

E
. S hare r, S en at or

W ill iam P ay ne , S en at or

Ca rr oll H
. L eave ll, S en at or 19 Ja m es P
. Whit e, S en at or G ay G
. K er nan, S en at or

Canda ce G oul d, S en at or Ro n 20 G ri ggs, S en at or

W ill iam F
. Burt , S en at or

Cr ai g W
. Br an dt, Co m

m iss ion er W ill 21 Cavin, Com

m issio ner Robert C orn, K eith Riddle, K eith Manes 22 Am icus Curiae 23 Dr . G avin Clarkson, Pro-S e 24 Las C ru ces , NM18 W e announced this unanim ous decis i o n after deliberation following oral 1 19 ar gum en t. T his opi nio n m em or ia liz es a nd m or e tho ro ughl y e xpl ic at es the ba sis f

or 20 our r uli ng. 1 OPIN ION 2 NA KAM UR

A, Ch ief Justice . 3 { 1} T he S ec re tary

of S ta te ( Se cr et ar

y ) soug ht t o r ei nst at e str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g in 4 the N ove m

be r 2018 ge ne ra l e le ct ion
. Ac oa lit ionof vot er s, po li ti cal part ie s, a nd 5 pol iti ca l or ganiz at ion s ( Pe tit ion er s) f ile d a peti tio n for w ri t of m an da m us a ski ng this 6 Co urt t o or de r the S ec re tary to sto p and m ak e no f

urthe r ef fo rt s to r ei nst at e the 7 s t ra i g h t -t i ck et o p t i o n o n g r o u n d s t h at s h e d o es n o tp o s s es s au t h o ri t y t o d o s o . We 8 ag re e w ithP et iti one rs . Whe the r str ai ght -t ic ket vo ti ng sha ll onc e m or e be aba llo t 9 optio n in general elections in NewMexico is a policy question for our Leg i slature. 10 Th e Legislature cannot delegate election policy determ ination s. T he Secr etary ’s 11 efforts to reinstate straight-ticket vot ing withou t legislat ive approval vio lates 12 se paratio n of pow er s pri nc ipl es an d is unlaw fu l. T he pe tit ionf or w ri t of m an da m us 13 is g rante d. 1 14 I. DISC US SION 15 { 2} “ T he N ewMe xic o C onst itu tio n gi ve s th is Cou rt th e powe r to i ssu e w ri ts o f 16 m andam

us ‘ against all state officer s.’ ” Sta t e ex rel. L eague of W omen V oters v. 17 H erre ra , 2009 -N MS C- 003, ¶ 12, 145 N
. M. 563 , 203 P
. 3d 9 4 ( ci tin g N
. M. Co nst . a rt .2

1 VI , § 3). T he Se cr et ar y is a “ state office r. ” Id

. W e have exer cised our “ original 2 j urisdictio n in m andam us in in stances wher e a petitioner sought to restrain one br anch 3 of governm ent from undu ly encroaching or i nterfer ing with the authority of another 4 branch in viol ation of Article III , S ection 1 of our state con s t i t u t i o n .” Sta te e x re l. 5 Sandel v. N. M. Pub. Util. Comm ’n , 1999 -N MS C- 019, ¶ 11, 127 N
. M. 272 , 980 P
. 2d 6 55. T his c as e pr es en ts this e xa ct c ir cu m st ance . P et iti one rs a sk u s to r es tr ai n th e 7 Se cr et ar

y , a n e xe cu tiv e br an chof fi ci al , f ro m e nc ro ac hin g up on the auth or ity of the 8 le gis la tiv e br an chto m ak e the e le ct ionlaw s. 9 { 3} Pe tit ion er s c ont en d that the S ec re tary

c an not r ei nst at e str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g in 10 the general election because onlythe Le gislature m ay decide this questi on and th at 11 the L eg isl at

ur e ha s a lr ea dy

de ci de d th at

str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g shal l no t be a va ila ble 12 to vot ers in the general e lection. T he Se cr et ar y responds that “ the NewMexico 13 L eg isl at

ur e ha s neve r pr ohi bit ed

the inc lus ionof

astr ai ght -p ar

ty vot ing opt ionon the 14 ba llo t, ” an d th at

the L eg isl at ur e “ le ft

thi s op tio n, li ke oth er

opt ion s in vol ve d in 15 fo rm attin g th e ba llo t, to be de te rm ine d by the [ Se cr et ar y ]
. ” S he e m

pha siz es that “ the 16 E le ct ionCo de qui te cl earl y giv es the [S ec re tary ] dis cr et ion on the f orm ulatio n of the 17 ballot” and directs us to NMS A 197 8, Section 1-10-12 (F) (2009) which provides that 18 “ [p ]aper b al lo ts sh al l:
. . . be in th e fo rm pre sc rib edby the [Sec ret ary] .”15 W e do n ot a ddr es s P et iti one rs ’ c la im that the Se cr et ar

y w as re qui re d to ini tiate 2 16 ru le m ak in g pr oc eed in gs to rei ns ta te st rai gh t-t ic ke t v ot in g. This claim is m oot gi ven 17 our c onc lus ionthat on ly

the L eg isl at

ur e m ay r ei nst at e str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g. W e al so 18 do n ot a ddr es s P et iti one rs ’ c ont en tio n th at the S ec re tary ’ s a tte m

pts to r ei nst at e 19 str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g in fr ing es upo n th ei r co nst itu tio na l r igh ts. P et iti one rs have 20 ab an done d th is c ont en tio n. 3 1 { 4} The S ecre tary ’ s argum ents require us to exam ine (A ) w hether the L egislature 2 m ay de le ga te to the S ec re tary the auth or ity

to de ci de w he the r to i nc lud e the str ai ght
3 tic ke t op tio n onba llo ts i n th e ge neral el ec tio n, ( B) the r ic h and c om ple x hi sto ry

of 4 str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g in New Me xic o, a nd ( C) the te xt and h ist or y of S ec tio n 1- 10- 5 12(F). 2 6 A . Se pa ra ti on of

P owers an d N on de le gat ion 7 { 5} T he Se cr et ar

y ’ s po sit ionin thi s c as e is not that the L eg isl at

ur e de ci de d th at

the 8 straight-ticket opti on sho uld be inclu ded on th e ball ot in th e upcom ing general 9 el ec tio n and d el eg at ed

to he r the ta sk o f im

ple m en tin g this poli cy ch oic e. R athe r, she 10 contends that the Le gislature intended “ to allow the [Se cretary ] , in the exer cise of her 11 discretion, to decide whether to includ e a stra ight-party votin g opti on on the uniform 12 ba llo t. ” I t i s he r posi tio n th at the L eg isl at

ur e de le ga te d to her

the thr es hol d 13 de te rm inatio n of

w he the r to e m

br ac e str ai ght -t ic ke t votin g at a ll. T his c la im is hig hly 14 problem atic.4

1 { 6} T he N e w M e x i c o C o n s t i tu t i o n g r a n t s t o e a c h o f t h e t h r e e b r a n c h e s o f sta te 2 governm ent distin ct and exclusive powers. N. M. C onst. art. III , § 1. (“ The pow ers 3 of the gove rn m en t of thi s state ar e div ide d int o thr ee dis tin ct de partm en ts, the 4 legislative, executive and judicial, and no person or collection of persons charged 5 w iththe e xe rc ise of

pow er s pr oper ly b el ongi ng t o on e of the se de partm en ts, sha ll 6 ex er ci se a ny

pow er s pr ope rl y

be lon gin g to e ith er

of the oth er s, ex cept a s inthi s 7 constitu tion o therwise e xpressly directed or per

m itted.”). T he Co nstitu tion further 8 pr ovi de s th at “ [t] he [ L ] eg isl at ur e . . . sha ll re gul at e the m an ne r, ti m e an d pl ac es of 9 vot ing ” an d “ sha ll en ac t suc h law s as w ill se cure the se cr ec y of the bal lo t an d t he 10 pur ity of e le ct ion s and g uard

a ga ins t the abuse of

e le ct ive f ranc his e. ” N
. M. Co nst . 11 art. VI I, § 1 (B). T his langu age vests our Legislature w ith plenary authority over 12 el ect io ns , an a ut ho rit y li m it edon ly b y t h e C o ns ti tu ti on it se lf. Se e Ch ase v . L uja n , 13 1944 -N MS C- 027, ¶

24, 48 N
. M. 261 , 149 P
. 2d 10 03 (“ [E ] xc ep t a s pr ohi bit ed , the 14 [L ] eg isl at

ur e ha s pl en ar

y pow er to re gul at e the m anne r of vot ing
. . . . ”) ; se e als o 15 P eo ple ’s Co nst itu tio nal

P art y v. E va ns , 197 1- N MS C- 11 6, ¶ 10, 83 N
. M. 303 , 491 16 P. 2d 5 20 ( “ E le ct ion s of ne ce ssi ty m ust be or ganized an d co ntrol le d to pr ote ct the 17 ri ght of suf fr ag e, se cr ec y of

the ba llo t, a nd a ga ins t c onf usi on, de ce pti on, dis hone sty 18 an d othe r poss ibl e abu se s of the el ec tiv e fr an ch ise
. T he L eg isl at ur e is c harg ed

w ith5

1 the duty

of e na ct ing law s to a cc om

pl is h th e pur ity

of e le ct ion s and p ro te ct

a ga ins t 2 ab use s. ”) ; Ci tyof R ato n v . Spr oul e , 196 7- N MS C- 141, ¶ 76, 78 N
. M. 138 , 429 P
. 2d 3 336 (“ W e ar e of

the opi nio n th at

our c onst itu tio n e xpr es sly

c ont em plate s and d ir ec ts 4 thatth e l e g i s l a tu r e s h a l l p r o v i d e th e p r o p e r m a c h i n e ry

f o r c o n du c t i n g e l e c t i o n s f

or 5 differe nt purpo ses . . . .” ). 6 { 7} It

is w el l un de rs too d th at str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g ha s m eanin gf ul i m pa ct on 7 el ect io ns . See Erik J. Eng st ro m an d Ja so n M . Rob ert s, The P olitics of Ballot Choice , 8 77 O hio St
. L
. J. 839, 839 -4 1, 864 -6 5 ( 2016 ) (d isc uss ing a tte m pts in se ve ra l st at es to 9 i mp o s e o r ab o l i s h s t r a i g h t - t i c k e t v o t i n g a n d o b s e rv i n g t h a t “b a l l o tl a w s h a v e b e c o me 10 a ne ww ea

pon in the que st f

or pol iti ca l po w er ” an d th at , “ in al m os t all c as es , the 11 actors w ho advo cate f or changes to the form

of the ballo t p u rs ue changes that are 12 lik el y to str en gth en the ir hol d onpol iti ca l po w er ”)
. Whe the r to i nc lud e the str ai ght
13 ticket optio n in elections is a policy decision of som e m agnitud e. 14 { 8} “ T he non de le ga tio n do ctri ne li m its , but doe s no t com

pl et el y pr ev en t, the 15 L eg isl at

ur e fr om ve sti ng a larg e m ea sur e of dis cr et ion ar

y auth or ity in adm ini str at ive 16 officer s and bod ies.” Co bb v

. Sta te Ca nv ass ing B d. , 200 6- N MS C- 034, ¶ 41, 140 17 N. M. 77, 140 P. 3d 498. “ The Le gislature m ay not vest unbrid l ed o r a rbitrary 18 au tho ri ty

in ana dm ini str at ive body . . . a nd m ust pr ovi de r ea sona

ble standard s to6

1 guid e it.” Id

. T his is be ca

use “ [l ] eg isl at ive pow er can not be de le ga te d, a nd the 2 L eg isl at

ur e cannot

c onf er upo n any pe rs on, of

fi ce r, or tr ibuna l the r igh t t o de te rm ine 3 what the lawshall be. T his is a function which the L egisla t u re al one is autho rized 4 under the Constit ution to exercise. ” Sta te v . Spe ars , 195 3-NMS C-033, ¶ 10, 57 N. M. 5 400, 259 P
. 2d 3 56 ( quot ing Sta te v . B rig gs , 77 P. 750, 750 (O r. 190 4) ). T his is not 6 to s ay , of

c our se , that the L e gis la tur e is p re cl ude d f ro m de le ga tin g th e im

ple m en ta tio n 7 o f a l eg i s l at i v el y d et er m i n ed “ s ch eme, p o l i cy, o r p u rp o se[. ] ” Co bb , 2 0 0 6
- N M S C -0 34, 8 ¶ 4 1. Th is for m

of d el eg at io n i s co m

m on in ou r m od ern , reg u l a t o r y st at e. See 9 generally 1 Jac ob A. St e i n , e t a l ., A dm ini strati ve L aw , § 3. 03[5] , at 128-42 (2013). 10 Rathe r, w ha t the L eg isl at ur e cannot do is de le ga te the ri ght to de te rm ine , in the f

ir st 11 in st an ce an d who le sa le , wh at th at sc he m e, po li cy , o r pu rp os e wil l be
. See Yakus v. 12 United States , 321 U. S. 414, 426 (194 4) (“On l y if we could say that there is an 13 ab se nc e of

standard s f

or the gui danc e of the A dm ini str at or ’ s a ct ion , so tha t i t w oul d 14 be im p o s s i b l e in a proper proce eding to ascertain whether the w ill of Congress has 15 be enobe y ed , w oul d w e be j ust if ie d inove rr idi ng i ts c hoi ce of m eans f or e ff ec tin g it s 16 declare d purpos e . . . . ”). 17 { 9} T he S e c r e t a ry ’ s p o s i t i o n i n th i s c a s e i s p r e c i s e l y w h a tth e n o n d e l e g a t i on 18 doc tr ine f

or bid s—tha t the Le gis la tur e de le ga te d to he r the auth or ity to m ak e the7

1 bin ar y c hoi ce of w he the r to e m

br ac e str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g or not . I n othe r w or ds, to 2 d e c i d e wh a tth e e l e c t i o n l a ws h a l l b e . Th e Le g i s l a tu r e c a n n o td e l e g a t e th i s au t h o r i t y, 3 an d to c onc lud e oth er

w ise woul d r es ult

in a vio la tio n of

the se paratio n of

pow er s. 4 O ur r ev ie wof the his tor y of str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g in N ew Me xic o assure s us that our 5 Le g i s l a tu r e h a s n e v e r

d e l e g a t e dth i s au t h o r i t y t o th e S e c r e t a ry. 6 B. History of Str aight-Ticket V oting in N ew Mexico 7 { 10} T he re a re thr ee f ac et s to the his tor

y of str ai ght -t ic ke t votin g in N ewMe xic o: 8 (1 ) our L egis la tu re’s fo rm er au th or iz at io n o f st rai gh t-t ic ke t v ot ing in ge ne ra l e le ct ion s 9 an d it s pra ct ic e of care fu lly a rt ic ulatin g ho wvot er s m ay e xe rc ise thi s ba llo t op tio n, 10 (2 ) the e m er ge nc e an d r ep eal of astatut e re qui ri ng the str ai ght -t ic ke t op tio n be 11 inc lud ed

on e m er ge nc y

pa pe r ba llo ts, a nd ( 3) the intro duc tio n of vot ing m ac hin es in 12 New Mexi co a nd the pa ssa ge a nd s ubse que nt r ep ea l of astatut e re qui ri ng those 13 m achines to have straight-ticket vo ting capabilit y . W e address each of these m atters 14 se parate ly
. W e be gin at a per iod of tim e bef or e str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g a ppe ar ed in our 15 Elec tion Cod e.8

1 1. Straight- tick et voting in gen eral elect ions 2 { 11} In185 2, the T er ri tor ia l L eg isl at

ur e pa sse d an e na ctm en t th at au tho ri ze d th e 3 G ove rn or

to “ pr ep ar e pr ope r fo rm s f or the uni fo rm an d pr op er c ondu ct ing of a ll 4 elections to be cond ucted and held un der the law s of this Terr itory [. ] ” 1882 Ge neral 5 L aw s of N. M. , § 64 (A ct of January 9, 185 2)
. T he a ct

r equir ed the “ se cr et ar

y of the 6 Te rritory ” to “ have all such form s . . . printed and di stributed, as o ccasio n m ay 7 require. ” Id

. T his enactm ent appears in the 1884 Com p i l ed La ws of Ne w Me xico 8 w ithm ini m al a lte ratio n. S ec tio n 11 82, C. L
. 188 4. T he 188 4 co m pilat iona lso 9 inc lud es apr ovi sio n sp ec if y ing that “ [a ] ll vote s shal l be b y ba llo t, e ac h vo te r be ing 10 required to deliver h is own v ote by person” and that “ [e] ach ticket shall be num bered 11 an d th e num

be r pla ce d op posi te the nam e of the vot er [. ] ” S ec tio n 1142, C. L
. 188 4. 12 { 12} In 1891, the Ter ritorial L egislature passed an enactm ent that pr o v ided 13 ad dit io na l, sp ecifi c gui danc e re gard ing ba llo ts. 189 1 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 85, § 2. T he 14 enactm ent m andated that 15 all tickets or ballots us ed at any gen eral e lection held in this Terr itory 16 sha ll be pr int ed on pla in w hit e pa pe r, thr ee inc he s in w idth and e ight 17 inches in leng th, or w ithin one quarter of an inch of that size. No such 18 tic ke t or

ba llo t sh al l have an y m ar k or num be r or de sig na tin g de vic e on 19 the ba ck

so tha t i ts c hara ct er

m ay be kno w n w he n f

old ed
.9

1 Id

. T his e na ctm en t a

ppe ar ed in the 189 7 C om

pil at ionof

the T er rito rial L aw s. 2 Secti on 16 34, C
. L
. 189 7. A s be fo re , the 189 7 c om pil at iona lso inc lud ed

the 3 pr ovi sio n auth or iz ing th e Gov erno r to p re pare the “pr ope r fo rm s” f or e le ct ion s. 4 Se ct ion167 3, C. L
. 189 7. 5 { 13} By

the tim e o f th e 1 915 com pilation (afte r New Mexico had becom e a state) , 6 the pr ovi sio n auth or iz ing the G ove rn or to “ pr ep ar e pr ope r fo rm s” w as no m or e. O ur 7 L eg isl at

ur e expande d it s tr eatm en t and c ontro l ov er ba llo ts co nsi de ra

bly
. B al lot s 8 w er e now ad dr es se d in se ve ra l dif fe re nt art ic le s and s ec tio ns w ith in a c ha pte r of our 9 la ws d ed ic at eden ti rel y to ele ct io ns . Se e ge ne ral ly§§ 197 6-2080 , C .L . 1915. E ach 10 section includ ed a heading generally stating th at section’ s purpos e. 11 { 14} One sec tion, entitled “ Ballots—How f urnished—Form [, ]” specified that 1 2 “[ e ]v e ry b a l l o tp r i n t e d u n d e r t h e p r o v i s i o n o f th i s a rt i c l e s h a l l b e h e a d e db y t h e n a me 13 an d e m

ble m of the pol iti ca l party

by w hom the c an did at es w hose nam es appe ar on the 14 ba llo ts w er e nom inate d, an d eac h of sai d ball ots sha ll co nta in o nly the nam es of

the 15 candidates nom inated by said party .” Id. § 1993
. Another section entitled 16 “ Ballots—Size—Con tents—False headings, etc. ” re stated the requirem ents that 17 ba llo ts “be pr int ed

on p la in whit e pa

pe r, thr ee inc he s inw idth and e igh t i nc he s in 18 length, or within one quarter of an inch of that size.” I d. § 19 94. T w o othe r se ct ion s10

1 en tit le d “ Candi da te s—F ili ng list —N am es on bal lot s” an d “ E m ble m ” addre sse d th e 2 supr em ac y

of the of fi ci al ba llo t and g av e ins tr uc tio ns a s to how the e m ble m s of 3 po li ti cal pa rti es were t o b e su bm it te d. Id

. §§ 1 995, 199 6. 4 { 15} In 1 9 2 7 , a com prehensive set of provisio ns expressly designated as an 5 “ E le ct ionCo de ” w as pa sse d f or the f ir st t im e. 192 7 N. M. L aw s, ch
. 41, §§ 1 01- 321. 6 T he 192 7 E le ct ionCo de sig nif ic an tly inc re as ed

le gis la tiv e co ntr ol o ve r the ba llo t. 7 Pr ovi sio ns wi thi n that co de spe ci fi ed that bal lot s m ust be pr int ed on “ good qua lity of 8 plain white paper, and all printing thereon shall be in black ink.” Id

. § 30 6( 1)
. T he 9 co de al so spe ci fi ed the fo nt ty pe s fo r the ba llo t: “ nonp ar ei l ca ps” for th e v ar

y ing 10 offices a ts t a ke i n t he e l e c t i ona nd af on t“ no ts m a l l e r

than br e vi e r

n or l a r ge r tha n 11 sm al l p ic a cap s” forcan di da te na m es . Id

. § 30 6( 4)
. Most cru ci al ly, the c ode 12 expr essly

e m br ac ed str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g a s aba llo t op tio n, inc or por at ed aba llo t13 design s ch em e predicated upon the availabilityof the option , and inclu ded 14 in st ru ct io ns fo r vo te rs sp eci fy in g ho w t he op ti on co ul d b e u ti li zed
. Id

. §§ 3 06, 311
. 15 { 16} Se ct ion306 of T he 192 7 E le ct ionCo de sp eci fie d th at “ [t ] he nam es of

a ll 16 candi da te s of an y party sha ll be pr int ed

on the ba llo t i n th e co lum n un de r the party 17 nam e and em

blem of such party .” Id

. § 30 6( 3)
. I t f urthe r spe ci fi ed

that the ba llo t 18 m ust inclu de “ a circ le three- fourths of an inch in diam eter und er the em blem of eac h11

1 party and a one-quarter inch square oppo site and to the right of the n ame o f e ach 2 candidate.” Id

. § 306( 4)
. A pic tor ia l r ep re se ntatio n of asam ple ba llo t— show ing how 3 th es e sym

bo ls sh ou ldap pe ar—was in cl ud edat S ect io n 3 06 (9 ). See ap p. A , fi g. 1. 4 Vot ing ins tr

uc tio ns p re pare d by

the L eg isl at

ur e an d in cl ude d inT he 192 7 E le ct ion 5 Code m ade clear to voters that m arki ng the circle, the square, or both had 6 co ns eq ue nc e. See 192 7 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 41, §§ 3 06, 311 , 312 ; se e als o app. A , f ig. 2. 7 { 17} One set of instructio ns to be print ed on the back of each b al l o t, instructed 8 vot er s a s f

oll ow s: 9 M a rk w i t h pe n a nd i nk or i nd e l i bl e pe nc i l a c r os s in the " und er the 10 party

nam e and em

blem of th e p arty for all or m ost of whos e candidates 11 y ou w ishto vot e, a nd if y ou w ishto vot e fo r an y c an did at e oth er

than a 12 candi da te w hose na m e ap pe ar s in the co lum n un de r suc h " m ar

k ac ro ss 13 in the f

ir st G to the right of the nam e of the candid ate in any other 14 colum

n for w hom

y ou wi s h t o v o t e. . . . If y ou do not wish to m ake a 15 cr oss in an y

c ir cl e y ou m ay m ak e a cr oss in the f ir st G to the r igh t of

the 16 nam e of ea ch candidate or person for w hom y ou wish to vo te. 17 Id

. § 306 (9 ); se e a ls o i d. § 312 ( statin g ho w“ E le ct or s sh al l vo te ” an d provi din g a 18 sim ilar ac count of ho w the stra ight-ticket op tion cou ld be utili zed). 19 { 18} A second set of instructio ns were to be printed bythe Sec retar y and delivered 20 to c ounty

c le rk s w ho we re in tur

n di re ct ed to hang the ins tr

uc tio ns i n vo tin g bo oth s 21 and “ elsewher e in or about the pol ling p lace. ” Id

. § 311. These instructions differed 22 onl y sli ght ly f ro m tho se that we re to app ear on the ba ck of ba llo ts and i nc lud ed

the12

1 fo llo w ing de sc ri pti on o f howvot er s c oul d e xe rc ise the str ai ght -t ic ke t o pti on: “ If y ou 2 w i s h t o v o t e as t r a i g h tp a rt y t i c k e t , ma k e ac r o s s i n th e c i r c l e u n d e r th e p a rt y n a me 3 and em

blem of such party , an d y our vote will be considered as cast for every 4 candidate nam ed under such party nam e. ” Id

. T he se co nd s et

of ins tr uc tio ns w en t on 5 to s p e c i f

y h o w a v o t e r c o u l d e x e r c i s e t h e s t r a i g h t - t i c k e t o p t i o n a n da lso 6 s i mu l t a n e o u s l y v o t e f

o r c a n d i d a t e s o f

a n o t h e r p a rt y. 7 4. If

y ou w ishto vot e a str ai ght party ti ck et w iththe ex cept ionof 8 one or

m or e of the c an did at es of

sa id p ar ty y ou m ay m ak e a cr oss in the 9 " under the party nam e and em

blem of s u ch party , and then m ake a 10 cr oss in the f

ir st G to the right of the nam e of the candidate in any other 11 co lu m

n fo r who m

y ou wis h t o v ot e[.] 12 Id

. F ina lly , the se co nd se t of ins tr uc tio ns e xpl ai ne d ho wavot er c oul d de cl ine to 13 utilize the straight-ticket op tion: “ If y ou do not m ake a cross in the " und er a ny party 14 em ble m y ou m ay the n m ak e a cr oss in the f ir st G t o t he r i gh to f

the n a m e o f

each 15 candidate for w hom

y ou wish to vo te[. ] ” Id

. 16 { 19} T he 192 7 E le ct ion Co de al so r ef er re d to str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g inpr ovi sio ns 17 ad dr es si ng ho w ele ct io n ju dg es sh ou ldco un t v ot es . Id

. §§ 31 4, 31 9. Th es e 18 pr ovi sio ns s ugge ste d th e fo llo w ing m ethod: 19 22. The election j udges andclerks m ay use any practica l 20 m ethod fo r co unt ing a nd t al ly ing the ba llo ts. T he f oll ow ing m ethod is 21 re co m

m en de d a s be st c al cu la te d to f ac ili ta te sa id co unt ing a nd t al ly ing :13

1 Upon ope nin g th e ba llot bo x, the j udge s of e le ct ionsha ll fi rs t 2 unf

old a ll of the ba llo ts and p la ce the m in se parate pil es a s f

oll ow s: 3 Strai ght

Re publ ic an ; S tr ai ght

D em oc rat; Sc ratc he d ba llo ts w ith 4 cr oss in the c ir cl e unde r the Re publ ic ane m ble m ; S cr at ch ed ba llo ts w ith 5 cross in the circle und er the De m ocratic em blem ; and in a fifth pile place 6 al l othe r sc ratc he d ba llo ts. T he n c ount the S tr ai ght

Re publ ic anba llo ts 7 and enter the num ber so count ed on the first line of the first tally sheet 8 in the pol l book

in w hic h th ey

a re ta lly ing the vot e. T his num be r shou ld 9 be wr itten i n t he c ol um n un de r the n am e o f

e a c h of the R e pu

bl i c an 10 candi da te s on the f ir st l ine
. Whe n th e Stra igh t R ep ubl ic anba llo ts h av e 11 been counted, tie th em into a sep arate package and keep them in a safe 12 place. 13 Inthe sam e w ay , e nte r on th e fir st l ine of the ta lly she et the 14 num

be r of S tr ai ght D em oc ratic ba llo ts i n th e co lum n un de r the nam e of 15 ea chof the D em oc ratic candi da te s. T he n ti e the se ba llo ts i nto apa ck ag e 16 w iththe ba llo ts a lr ea dy c ount ed
. 17 Id

. § 319
. 18 { 20} T he 192 7 E le ct ion Co de w as co m pil ed a t C ha pte r 41 i n th e 1929 Co m

pil at ion , 19 at Chap te r 56 i n th e 1941 Co m pil at ion , a nd at C ha

pte r 3 inthe 195 3 C om

pil at ion
. 20 The 1927 Elec tion Co d e ev en tually becam e sim

ply the “ Elec tion Cod e. ” N MSA 21 1941 , § § 56-101 ( 1942 ). E ac h c om pil at ion —19 29, 194 1, a nd 1 953— inc lud es the 22 str ai ght -t ic ke t- vot ing pr ovi si on s dis cu sse d. N MS A 195 3, §§ 3 -3 -7 , - 12, - 13, - 20 23 (1953); NMSA1941 , §§ 56-306, -312, -313 (1941); NMSA1929 , § 41-306 (1929 ). 24 N o m eanin gf

ul c hange s w er e m ad e to those pr ovi sio ns unti l 19 69. 25 { 21} In196 9, our

L eg isl at ur e re pe al ed

A rt ic le 3 of th e E le ct ionCo de , the se ct ion 26 that i nc lud ed

the pr ovi sio ns dea lin g wi th str ai ght -t ic ke t votin g. 1969 N
. M. L aw s, c h.14

1 240, § 451
. Sim

ultaneous ly , the L egislature enacted a new Article 12 which included 2 a se ct ion ad dr es sin g the “ Mark ing ” of the “ Pa pe r Ba llo t. ” 196 9 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 240 , 3 § 255
. One provision within th at article specified that 4 T he vot er

in pr ep ar ing apa

pe r ba llo t i n age ne ra l e le ct ionsha ll: 5 A. if h e wis he s to vo te a st rai gh t pa rty tic ke t, m arka cro ss (X) 6 in the ci rcl e be neath th e na m e of the party

a nd h is v ote sha ll be 7 considered as having been cast for every candidate nam ed on the ticket 8 of that party

on the b al l o t , unless he also votes for one or m ore 9 candi da te s insom e oth er co lum n or fo r som e pe rs on whose nam e is n ot 10 pr in te d o n t he ba ll ot [.] 11 1969 N. M. L aw s, ch. 240, § 255(A). Subsections (B) and (C) explained ho w a voter 12 co uld uti liz e the str ai ght -t ic ke t op tio n and s til l vo te f or c an did at es in the party

f or 13 which he did not wish to vo te straight ticket and how the voter could decline to u tilize 14 the str ai ght -t ic ke t optio n. 1969 N
. M. L aw s, ch
. 240, § 25 5( B) , ( C)
. T his pr ovi sio n 15 wa s codified at NMS A 1953, Se ction 3-12-19 (1969 Pocket Supp.). 16 { 22} In the wake of t he 1969 am endm ents to the Elec tion Code, Section 3-12-19 was 17 the onlyprovisio n addressing straight-ticket votin g in general elections that rem ained 18 w ith in the a rt ic le of

the E le ct ionCo de enti tle d “ Co nduc t of E le ct ion s, ” the a rt ic le 1 9 w h e r e p r o v i s i o n s au t h o r i z i n g s t r a i g h t - t i c k e tv o t i n g i n g e n e r a l e l e c t i o n s h a da l w a ys 20 be enpla ce d. T he vot ing ins tr uc tio ns and the pr ovi sio n e xpl ai nin g ho we le ct ion15

1 j udge s sh ou ld co unt

vot es —bo th o f w hic h in cl ude d e xpr es s r ef er en ce s to str ai ght
2 ticket votin g—wer e gone. 3 { 23} In197 7, S ec tio n 3- 12- 19 w as r epealed al ong w ithse ve ra l othe r pr ovi sio ns 4 w ith in C ha

pte r 3, A rt ic le 12 of the E le ct ion Co de
. 1977 N
. M. L aw s, ch
. 222 , § 10 3. 5 Fo llo w ing the r epeal of S ec tio n 3- 12- 19, the E le ct ionCo de no l onge r inc lud ed a 6 pr ovi sio n e xpr es sly

auth or iz ing str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g inge ne ra l e le ct ion s. 7 { 24} D es pit e the ab se nc e of apr ovi sio n e xpr es sly

auth or iz ing str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g 8 in general election s, legislators m ade six attem pts to p rohibit s traight-ticket votin g as 9 a ba llo t op tio n inge ne ra l e le ct ion s be tw ee n 20 01 and 2 007. S
. B. 52, 48th Le g. , 1st 10 Ses s. (N.M. 2 00 7) ; S.B
. 10 6, 47 th Leg ., 1s t Sess
. (N.M. 2 00 5) ; S.B . 83 7, 4 6t h Leg ., 11 1st S es s. ( N
. M. 200 3) ; S
. B. 147 , 46th L eg . , 1st S es s. ( N.M. 20 03 ); S. B. 293 , 45th 12 L eg . , 1s t Sess. ( N
. M. 200 1) ; S
. B. 183 , 45th L eg . , 1st S es s. ( N
. M. 200 1)
. N one of 13 the se bil ls p as se d. 14 { 25} In200 8, the S ec re tary of S ta te ’ s of

fi ce c re at ed

r eg ulations go ve rn ing how 1 5 b a l l o t s w i t h i n c o n s i s t e n t m a rk i n g s s h a l l b e c o u n t e d i n t h e e v e n t o f a n e le ct ion 16 re co unt . 1. 10 .23. 12 N MA C ( 11/ 03/ 2008 ). T he se r eg ulatio ns o pe rate f ro m the 17 presum

pt i o n that straight-ticket vo ting is a law fully perm itted feature in genera l 18 el ec tio ns. T he r eg ulatio ns s ta te , a m ong oth er thi ngs, that a

str ai ght -t ic ke t vote f

or16

1 both part ie s sh al l be tre at ed as aninv al id v ote , 1. 10. 23. 12( I) N MA C, a nd a str ai ght
2 ticket vote for both parties and th en also for an in divid ual candidate shall be treated 3 as a vo te forth e in di vi du al can di da te . Id

. T hese re g u l at i o ns rem ain in the New 4 M e x i c o Ad mi n i s t r a t i v e C o d e t o d a y. 5 { 26} Be tw ee n 20 11 and 2 013, le gis la tor s th re e tim es a tte m pte d to m an da te that the 6 st rai gh t-t ic ke t op ti on be av ai labl e to vo te rs in ge ne ral ele ct io ns . See S. B. 276 , 51s t 7 L eg . , 1st

S es s. ( N
. M. 201 3) ; S
. B. 218 , 50th L eg . , 2nd S es s. (N
. M. 201 2) ; S
. B. 582 , 8 50th L eg . , 1st

S es s. ( N
. M. 201 1)
. N one of the se bil ls p as se d. 9 2. Straight- tick et voting and em ergenc y paper b allots 10 { 27} T he sam e y ear our L eg isl at ur e re pe al ed

the pr ovi sio n e xpr es sly

auth or iz ing 1 1 s t ra i g h t -t i ck et v o t i n g i n g en er al el ec t i o n s (1 9 7 7 ), i ten ac t ed a p ro v i s i o n th at ex p l ai ned 12 to vot er s uti liz ing “ em er ge nc y pa pe r ba llo t[ s] ” howthe y

c oul d e xe rc ise the str ai ght
13 ticket optio n. 1977 N. M. L aw s, ch. 222, § 56. E m ergency -paper- ballot vo ters w ere 14 instructed to “ m ark a c ross (X) in the circle beneath the nam e of the party
. . . .” Id

. 15 Doing so ensu red that their “ vote shall be cons idered a s h aving been cast for every 16 candidate nam ed on the ticket of that party on the ballot[.] ” Id

. T he se ins tr

uc tio ns 17 m irrored th o se given to all vo ters during the tim e that straight-ticket votin g was 18 au tho ri ze d inge ne ra l e le ct ion s.17

1 { 28} This enactm ent concerning straight-ticket vo ting an d em ergency ballots was 2 co m pil ed a t N MS A 1953 , Se ct ion 3- 12- 87 (1 976- 77 In te ri m Su pp. ). I n 19 78, S ec tio n 3 3- 12 -8 7 was reco m

pi le d a s Se ct io n 1 -1 2- 53
. See P ar a l l e l T ab l e . I n 1 9 7 9 , the 4 Le gislatur e am ended Section 1-12-53 to perm it voters util izing em ergency paper 5 ba llo ts to “ m ar

k” the ir ba llo t w itha“ ch ec k ( T )” as an alternative to the “ cross (X )” 6 be ne ath th e party na m e fo r w hic h the vot er w ish ed to ca st a str ai ght -t ic ke t vo te . 197 9 7 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 57, § 3. In 2005 , se ve ra l bi lls w er e pr opos ed to el im inate the str ai ght
8 ti ck et op ti on on th e em erg en cy ba ll ot . See S. B. 106, 47th Le g., 1 Sess. (N .M. 2005 ); st 9 S. B. 678 , 680 , 718 & 735, 47th L eg . , 1st Se ss. (N
. M. 2005 ); H
. B. 362 , 47th L eg . , 1st 1 0 Se s s . ( N
. M
. 2 0 0 5 ) ; H
. B
. 1 0 6 3 , 4 7 t h L e g . , 1 s t S e s s . ( N
. M
. 2 0 0 5 ) ; H
. B
. 1 0 6 4, 47t h 11 Le g., 1st Sess. (N. M. 2005). These ef fo rt s wer e successful and the straight-ticket 12 optio n was r em oved from Sec tion 1 -12-53
. 2 0 0 5 N.M . Law s, ch. 270, § 74. A fter 13 2005 , S e c t i on1
- 12
- 53 p r ov i de d on l y that“ [ t ] he v ot e r

i n pr e par i ng a n e m e r ge ncy 14 pa pe r ba llo t i n age ne ra l e le ct ion sh al l m ar k th e ba llo t i n a cc or danc e w iththe 15 ins tr uc tio ns f or that ba llo t ty

pe . ” N MS A 197 8, § 1- 12- 53 ( 2005 ). I n 20 09, S ec tio n 16 1- 12- 53 w as r ep ea le d a lto ge the r. 200 9 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 150 , § 37
.18

1 3. Straight- tick et voting and voting m achines 2 { 29} In195 1, the L eg isl at ur e pa sse d am

ult i- se ct ione na ctm ent pe rm itt ing the use 3 of vot ing m ac hin es . 195 1 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 192 , §§ 1 -2 4. The f ir st s ec tio n of

thi s 4 enactm ent directed the Se cretary to form a com m ittee w ith four indi vidu als appoint ed 5 by the G ove rn or

to “ stu dy , ex am ine an d appr ove vot ing m ac hin es f or use in the S ta te 6 of N ewMe xic o. ” 195 1 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 192 , § 1. T he a ct al so inc lud ed ase ct ion 7 ad dr es si ng th e req ui red sp eci fic at io ns fo r vo ti ng m ach in es . Id

. § 2. It specif

ied that 8 “ [n ] o vo tin g m ac hin e sha ll be appr ove d by the c om m itt ee unl es s it

sha ll sa tis fy ” a lis t 9 of sp eci fic cri te ria de si gn at edas S ub se ct io ns (a) t hr ou gh (h)
. Id

. S ubse ct ion( h) 10 spe ci fi ed

that the m ac hin e ha d to “ pe rm it ea chvot er , a t othe r than pr im ar y e le ct ion s, 11 to v ote astr ai ght

party ti ck et in one ope ratio n, a nd, in one ope ratio n, to v ote f or a ll 12 the candidates of one party for pre sidential electors.” Id

. § 2(h)
. T he m ac hin e vot ing 13 en ac tm en t w as sub se que ntl y c odi fi ed a t N MS A 195 3, S ec tio ns 3-4 -1 to -2 5 ( 1951 ) 14 an d th e pr ovi sio n r equirin g vo tin g m ac hin es to ha ve str ai ght -t ic ke t c ap ab ili ty 15 appeared at S ection 3-4-2(h) (1951). 16 { 30} In196 9, S ec tio ns 3 -4 -1 to -2 5 w er e re pe al ed
. 196 9 N. M. L aw s, ch
. 240, § 45 1. 17 Ou r Le gislature sim

ultaneous ly

enacted a new ver sion o f the voting m achine act at 18 Se ct ion s 3- 9- 1 to - 13. 196 9 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 240, §§ 1 87- 195; see N MS A 195 3,19

1 §§ 3 -9 -1 to -1 3 ( 1969 ). S ec tio n 3- 4- 2( h) (r equir ing vot ing m ac hin es to h av e str ai ght
2 tic ke t c ap ab ili ty ) nowappe ar ed a t S ec tio n 3- 9- 5( H ). 196 9 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 240 , 3 § 18 7; se e als o NMS A 1953, § 3-9-5(H ) (1969). 4 { 31} In 1976, the authorityto approve vot ing m achines wa s given to the “ [S] ecre tary 5 of [ S] ta te. ” 1976 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 5, § 4; N MS A 195 3, § 3- 9- 5 ( 1976 ). I n 19 78, 6 Section 3-9-5 wa s recom piled as Section 1-9-4. N M SA 1 9 7 8 , § 1-9-4 (1978 ). In 7 1991 , the L eg isl at ur e spe ci fi ed that the “ m ac hin e” c ont em plate d by the vot ing 8 m achine act w as a “ lever-ty pe votin g m achine.” 1991 N. M. Law s, ch. 1 06, § 1. In 9 the w ak e of

a ll the se c hange s, S ec tio n 1- 9- 4( H ) pr ovi de d that “ [n ] o leve r- ty pe vot ing 10 m achine s hall be app r ov e d by the s e c r e t a ry

o f s t a t e u nl e ss : . . . H
. i tp e rm i t s e a ch 11 vot er , a t othe r than pr im ar y e le ct ion s, to vot e a str ai gh t pa rty t icke t i n on e 12 ope ratio n[
. ] ” N MS A 1978 , § 1-9- 4 ( 1991 ). I n 20 01, S ec tio n 1- 9- 4 w as r ep ea le d a lon g 1 3 w ith s e v e r a l o t h e r p r o v i s i o n s d e a l i n g w i th v o t i n g m a c h i n e s , 2 0 0 1 N
. M
. L a w s , c h. 14 233, § 16 , thu s r em ovi ng any r ef er en ce to str ai ght-t ic ke t vo tin g f ro m the vot ing 15 m ac hin e ac t. 16 { 32} In the sam e 2001 bi ll repealing Section 1-9-4, the Le gislature passed 17 enactm ents ushering in the era of “ votin g sy stem s.” Se e ge ne ral ly200 1 N
. M. L aw s, 18 ch
. 233 , §§ 1 -1 5. V oti ng s y ste m s are “ a co m bin at ionof

m ec hanic al ,20

1 electrom echanical or e lectronic equipm ent, incl udin g the software and firm ware 2 re qu i re dt o p ro g ra m

an dco n t ro l th e e qu i p m en t , t h at i s u s ed t o ca s t an d co u n tv o t es [. ]” 3 2001 N
. M. L aw s, ch
. 233, § 1( B)
. T he L eg isl at ur e cr af te d ase t of

“ standard s” vot ing 4 syste m s m

us t m eet . I

d. §§ 1 0- 11. S tr ai ght -t ic ke t c apab il it y w as not one of tho se 5 standards. In 2006, the L egislature passed enactm ents r equiring all prec incts in New 6 Mexico to utili ze “vo t i n g s ystem s,” and requiring th ose votin g sy stem s to “ use a 7 paper ballot on which the voter phy sically or elec tronically

m arks the voters’ choices 8 on the ba llo t i tse lf

[. ] ” 2006 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 43, §§ 1 -2
. A nd w iththi s, our e le ct ion 9 laws c am e full circ le in som e sense. 10 4. An alysi s of This History 11 { 33} Fo r the fi fty y ears be tw ee n 1927 and 1977 , our L eg isl at ur e not onl y e xpr es sly 12 ap pr ove d stra igh t- tic ke t vo tin g in ge ne ra l ele ct ion s but, f or the bul k of

thi s ti m e, gave 13 ex ceedi ng ly spe ci fi c ins tr uc tio ns a bout howvot er s c oul d vo te str ai ght ti ck et . T he 14 1977 repea l of the law expressly authorizing st raight-ticket votin g in general 15 el ec tio ns, a s w el l as the dis ap pe ar an ce of the vot ing ins tr

uc tio ns and the ins tr

uc tio ns 16 to the e le ct ionj udge s e xpr es sly refe rr ing to str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g, c an not be 17 ove rs ta te d.21

1 { 34} The provisions th at continued after 1977 and th at ref erre d to str ai g h t -t icket 2 votin g di d no tc l e a r l y s t a t e thats t r a i gh t - t i c ke tv ot i ng w a s autho r i z e d i n ge ne ral 3 el ec tio ns, a s ha d be enthe c as e fo r the pa st h al f ce ntury . R athe r, the se pr ovi sio ns o nly 4 m ade straight-ticket voting available for em ergency -ballot voters and m andated that 5 vot ing m ac hin es have str ai ght -t ic ke t votin g cap ab ili ty . T he se pr ovi sio ns d o no t have 6 the sam e cl ar ity

or f unc tio na l si gn if

ic an ce of the f orm er statut es that so c le ar ly 7 m an da te d th at str ai ght -t ic ke t votin g be a n op tio n inge ne ra l e le ct ion s. T he str ai ght
8 ticket provisi ons in the m achine votin g and em ergency ballot context we re r epealed 9 in 200 1 (v oting m achines) and 2005 (em ergency ballots), af

ter w hich legislato rs 10 atte m pte d bo th t o pr ohi bit

a nd r ei nst at e str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g inge ne ra l e le ct ion s. 11 Supra , ¶

¶ 24, 26. I t i s e nti re ly

unc le ar w ha t auth or ity

se rv ed a s th e ba si s f

or the 12 Se cr et ar

y ’ s 20 08 r eg ulatio ns whic h a ppear to a ssu m e that stra igh t- tic ke t vo tin g 13 co nti nue d to be a ba llo t op tio n inge ne ra l e le ct ion s de spi te the f ac t tha t, a s of

200 5, 14 str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g w as no l onge r a fe at ur e of a ny kin d inour

e le ct ionlaw s. 15 { 35} In sum , w e see nothing in this his tory that sugg ests that ou r Le g i s l at ure ever 16 int en de d to giv e au tho ri ty to the S ec re tary

to de ci de w he the r str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g 17 shall be ano pt i ont o vo t e r s i n ge ne r a l e l e c t i on s. T o t he c on t r a ry , thi s hi st ory 18 ind ic at es that our L eg isl at ur e unde rs tands that it al one pos se sse s auth or ity to de ci de22

1 w he the r an d un de r w ha t c ir cum stanc es str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g sh oul d be ava ila ble in 2 ge ne ra l e le ct ion s. N oth ing in the te xt or his tor y of S ec tio n 1- 10- 12( F) c au se s us to 3 doub t this c onc lus ion
. 4 C. Sect io n 1 -1 0- 12 (F) 5 { 36} Section 1-10-12, entitled “ Paper ballots; general r equirem ents[,] ” states that 6 Pa

pe r ba llo ts s ha ll: 7 A
. B e n u mb e r e dc o n s e c u t i v e l y; 8 B. Be uniform in size; 9 C. Be printed on goo d qualitywhite paper ; 10 D. Be printed in plain black ty pe; 11 E
. H av e the pre ci nc t num be rs pr int ed

on e ac h pa

pe r ba llo t; 12 an d 13 F. Be in the form prescribed by

the secre tary

of state. 14 The origin of this provis ion can be tra ced back to 1891 when the T erritorial 15 Le gislat ure fir st specified that ballots be printed on “ plain white paper” and be a 16 ce rt ai n un if

orm siz e. 18 91 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 85, § 2. T he sourc e of the spe ci fi c 17 langua ge uti liz ed

by our L eg isl at ur e in S ec tio n 1- 10- 12 c anbe tr ac ed to tw o se parate 18 statut es : N MS A 195 3, S ec tio n 3- 10- 7 ( 1969 ) an d N MS A 195 3, S ec tio n 3- 10- 10 19 (1 96 9)
. See 196 9 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 240 , §§ 2 02, 205
. 20 { 37} Se ct ion 3- 10- 7 w as en tit le d “ Ba llo ts—Pa pe r— G en er al re qui re m en ts” a nd 21 pr ovi de d a s f

oll ow s:23

1 Pa

pe r ba llo ts u se d inthe pr im ar y a nd g en er al e le ct ion s sh al l: 2 A
. Be num be re d c onse cu tiv el y

f or e ac h pr ec inc t be gin nin g 3 w ithnum

be r one . T he num

be r sha ll be pr int ed in the upp er r igh t- hand 4 co rn er

of the ba llo t w ithadia gon al pe rforate d li ne so p la ce d th at the 5 portion of the b allot bearing the num ber in the upper right-hand corner 6 m ay

be r ea dil y

a nd e as ily

de ta ch ed f ro m the pa pe r ba llo t; 7 B. Be uniform in size; 8 C. Be printed on goo d qualitywhite paper ; 9 D. Be printed in plain black ty pe; 10 E
. H av e al l w or ds and p hr as es , e xc ep t the nam es of the 11 candi da te s, pr int ed in the ir pr ope r pla ce ; and 12 F. H av e the pr ec inc t num be r pr int ed

on e ac h ba llo t. 13 Se ct ion3- 10- 7 ( 1969 ) an d Se ct ion 1- 10- 12 (2 009) dif fe r onl y sli ght ly : S ec tio n 3- 10- 14 7(A) wa s m ore specific than S ection 1-10-12(A); Se ction 3-10-7(E) w as not carrie d 15 ove r int o S ec tion 1- 10-12; S ec tio n 3- 10- 7( F) e xis ts at S ec tio n 1- 10- 12( E ); a nd 16 Se ct ion3- 10- 7 di d no t i nc lud e the la ngua ge “ be in the f orm pr es cr ibe d by

the 1 7 s e c r e t a ry o f

s t a t e ” a s i n S e c t i o n 1
- 1 0
- 1 2 ( F )
. T h i s “f o rm p r e s c r i b e d ” l a n g u a g e c a me 18 fro m Sect io n 3 -1 0- 10
. 19 { 38} Section 3-10-10 wa s entitled “ Ballots—Paper—Form for gener al election.” It 20 stated that “ [p] aper ballots used in the general elec tion sh all be in the form prescribed 21 by the [S] ecre tary of [S] tate and shall conform to” four requirem ents non e of w hich 22 need be discussed in any detail here. Se ction 3-10-10 (1969).24

1 { 39} Bo th S ec tio ns 3 -1 0- 7 and 3 -1 0- 10 w er e re pe al ed in 1977 a lon g with m an y 2 oth er se ct ion s of

Ch ap te r 3, A rt ic le 10 gove rn ing “ Ba llo ts and B al lot L ab el s. ” 197 7 3 N
. M. L aw s, ch
. 222, § 103. Si m ult an eo usl y , the L eg isl at

ur e en ac te d ane wS ec tio n 4 3-12-78 entit led “ Em ergency Situations—Em ergency Paper Ballots—Gener al 5 Re qui re m en ts[ , ] ” 1977 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 222 , § 47 ; see NMS A 195 3, § 3-12-78 (1977 ), 6 and a new Section 3 -1 2 -80 entitled “ Em ergency Situations—Em ergency Paper 7 Ba llo ts—Fo rm

f or G en er al E le ct ion
. ” 197 7 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 2 22 , § 4 9; see NMS A 8 1953 , § 3- 12- 80 (1 977)
. Se ct ion 3- 12- 78 (1 977) w as ne ar ly ide nti ca l t o S ec tio n 3- 10- 9 7 ( 1969 ) ex ce pt tha t S ec tio n 3-12 -7 8 appl ie d to “ em er ge nc y pa pe r ba llo ts. ” Se ct ion 1 0 3- 1 2
- 8 0 ( 1 9 7 7 ) w a s n e a r l y i d e n t i c a l t o S e c t i o n 3
- 1 0
- 1 0 ( 1 9 6 9 ) e x c e p t t h a tittoo 11 ap pl ie d t o “ em erg en cy pape r ba ll ot s.” 12 { 40} In197 8, S ec tio n 3- 12- 78 w as r ec om pil ed a s S ec tio n 1-12 -4 4 and S ec tio n 3- 12- 13 80 w as r ec om

pil ed a s S ec tio n 1- 12- 46. In 2009 , Se ct ion 1- 12- 44 w as am en de d and 14 re co m pil ed a s th e pr es en t S ec tio n 1- 10- 12. 200 9 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 150 , § 10
. 15 Si m ult an eo usl y

a nd in the sa m e bil l, Se ct ion 1- 12- 46 w as r ep ea le d. 200 9 N
. M. L aw s, 16 ch
. 150 , § 37
. 17 { 41} As a consequence of the 2009 am endm ent s , Section 1-10-12 no longer 18 governed or addressed em ergency b al l o ts. I t concerned paper ballots and includ ed25

1 the langua ge a s we know it today . I n e ff ec t, the pr ovi sio n r ev er

te d to the pur

pose it 2 or igi na lly

ha d in196 9 w itha n e sse nti al a dde d fe at ur e: it spe ci fi ed

that pa pe r ba llo ts 3 sha ll “ be in the f

orm pr escribe d by

the se cr et ar

y of state . ” N MS A 197 8, § 1- 10- 12 4 (2009). 5 { 42} This history

does not s uggest, as the Sec re tary argues, that our Legislature 6 m eant t o e m

pow er he r to d ec ide w he the r str ai ght -t ic ke t votin g shal l be ava ila ble to 7 vot er s inge ne ra l e le ct ion s w he n it gave he r the auth or ity

to pr es cr ibe the f

orm of the 8 ballot. Since 1927 , our Elec tion Code has addressed whether and under what 9 ci rc um stanc es str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g sh al l be a va ila ble to vote rs in gen er al e le ct ion s 10 in an art ic le of

our E le ct io n Co de ini tia lly

e nti tle d th e “ Ca lli ng and C ondu ct of 11 E le ct ion s” a nd l at er

sim ply th e “ Co nd uct of

E le ct ion s. ” 192 7 N
. M. L aw s, c h. 41, 12 §§ 3 02- 21 ( Ca lli ng and C onduct of E le ct ion s) ; N MS A 192 9, §§ 4 1- 301 to - 360 13 (1 929) ( sa m e) ; N MS A 194 1, §§ 56- 301 to - 362 (1 941) ( sa m e) ; N MS A 195 3, §§ 3 -3 1 14 to -40 (1953 ) (sam e); N MSA1953 , §§ 3-12-1 to -16 (1969) (Condu ct of E lections). 15 The statutes that w ould eventually becom e Section 1-10-12 w ere originallycodified 16 at A rt ic le 10, a n art ic le a ddr es sin g “ Ba llo ts and B al lot L ab el s. ” N MS A 195 3, § 3- 10- 17 1 to -1 5 (1 969)
. A s the statut es that w oul d la te r be co m e Se ct ion 1- 10- 12 c am e int o 18 ex ist en ce a t a

ti m e w he n ase ct ionin an en tir el y dif fe re nt artic le pr ovi de d f

or str ai ght
-26

1 tic ke t vo tin g inge ne ra l e le ct ion s, w e can de duc e that the or igi ns of Se ct ion1- 10- 12 2 ha d no th in g wha ts oe ve r to do wit h st rai gh t-t ic ke t vo ti ng . See N orm anJ. S ing er a nd 3 J.D. Sh am

bi e Si ng er, 1 A Suthe rla nd Stat utes and Statu tor y Co nstruc tio n , § 28.11, at 4 637 (7 th e d. 200 9) ( “ [I ] n th e co nstru ct ionof apart ic ular co de se ct ion , a tte nti on 5 shou ld b e giv ento the e nti re c ha pte r, or e ve n th e en tir e co de , to det er m ine the 6 p u r p o s e a n do b

j e c t i v e o f th e [ L ]e g i s l a tu r e i n o r g a n i z i n g th e ma t e r i a l
. U n d e r s o me 7 ci rc um stanc es th e pla ce m en t or r earr an ge m en t of

c ode se ct ion s m ay

be he lpf ul t o 8 determ ine proper construction of the statute.” (footnotes om itted)). 9 { 43} It

is tr ue that fr om 1977 unt il 2009 the e m er ge nc y ba llo t i te ratio ns o f Se ct ion 10 1- 10- 12 w er e co dif

ie d w ith in the Co nduc t of Elec ti on s art ic le
. B ut a ft er 200 9, 11 Se ct ion1- 10- 12 o nc e ag ai n m ove d ba ck to A rt ic le 10 o f th e Elec ti on C ode
. T he 12 signi fican c e o f

thi s m ov e
— ou to f

a nd a w a y f r om the a rt i c l e w he r e the s t a tut es 1 3 au tho ri zi ng s tr ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g in ge ne ra l e le ct ion s wer e gen er al ly 14 hous ed

—su gge sts that S ec tio n 1- 10- 12 i s no t a pr ovi sio n th at

w as e ve r int en de d to 15 authorize the Sec retar y to decide questio ns relating to straigh t-ticket voting
. W e ar e 16 as sur ed

of the c or re ctne ss o f thi s c onc lus ionby apla in l an gua ge a na ly sis of S ec tio n 17 1- 10- 12.27

1 { 44} Se ct ion1- 10- 12( F) ’ s di re ct ive that the ba llo t “ be in the f orm pr es cr ibe d by

the 2 se cret ary” is p rece de d b y Subs ect io ns (A) th ro ug h (E). The n atur e o f Subs ect io ns (A) 3 th ro ug h (E) gi ve us in s i g h t i n to th e m ean in g o f Subs ect io n (F ). See N MS A 197 8, 4 § 1 2- 2A- 20 (A)(2 ) (1 99 7) (“ [T]he m ean in g o f a ge ne ral wor d orph ras e fo ll owi ng two 5 or m or e spe ci fi c w or ds or phr as es m ay be li m ite d to the c at eg or y e sta bli she d by

the 6 spe ci fi c wor ds or p hr as es . ”) ; Sta te v . O ffi ce of P ub. D ef

. e x re l. M uqqd din , 7 2012 -N MSC- 029, ¶ 29, 285 P. 3d 62 2 (“ The r ule of ej usdem gene ris requires, that 8 w he re ge ne ra l w or ds fo llo wa n e num er at ionof pe rs ons or

thi ngs of apart ic ular an d 9 specific m eaning, the general w ords are not construed in th eir w idest extent bu t are 10 ins te ad

c onstru ed

a s a ppl y ing to pe rs ons or thi ngs of the sa m e kin d or cl as s a s th ose 11 sp eci fic al ly m en ti on ed .” (i nt ern al qu ot at io n m ark s an d c it at io n o m it te d) ). 12 { 45} Su

bse ct ion s ( A ) thr ough( E ) state that ba llo ts s ha ll be num be re d, sha ll be 13 uniform in size , shall be printed on quality white paper, shall be printed in plain black 14 ty pe, and shall h ave precinct num bers printed upo n them
. Section 1-1 0 -1 2 (A )-( E)
. 15 These pr ovisi ons all address the technical form atting of b allots. This i ndicates that 16 the te rm

“ fo rm ” in S ec tio n 1- 10- 12( F) is co rr ec tly co ns true d a s de le ga tin g to the 17 Secr etary

authority only over the technical aspects of ballots. This is a lim ited power 18 as m an y of the te ch nic al , fo rm attin g a spe ct s of the ba llo t are spe ci fi ed

by statut e . See28

1 generally NMSA 1 97 8, § § 1 -1 0- 1 t o -1 4 (1 96 9, as am en de d th ro ug h 20 17 ). As we 2 not ed e ar lie r in this opi nio n, w he the r str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g shall be a n op tio n on 3 ba llo ts i n ge ne ra l e le ct ion s is not a te ch nic al fo rm attin g que sti on. It is a que sti on o f 4 s i g n i f i c a n ts ub s t a n c e o v e r

wh i c h S e c t i o n 1
- 1 0
- 1 2 g i v e s th e S e c r e t a ry n o au t h o r i t y. 5 II. CON CLU SION 6 { 46} O ur

L eg isl at ur e cannot

de le ga te to the Se cr et ar

y unf ette re d auth or ity to d ec ide 7 w he the r the str ai ght -t ic ke t op tio n sh al l a ppe ar on b al lot s inthe ge ne ra l e le ct ion
. T he 8 his tor y of str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g inge ne ra l el ect ion s inN ewMe xic o sh ow s th at the 9 Le g i s l a tu r e n e v e r

d e l e g a t e d

o r a t t e mp t e d t o d e l e g a t e t h i s au t h o r i t y t o th e S e c r e t a ry. 10 T his c onc lus ionis hard ly sur pr isi ng giv en the fa ct that w he the r str ai ght -t ic ke t vo tin g 11 sha ll be aba llo t op tio n inage ne ra l e le ct ionis a m eanin gf ul pol ic y que sti on and n ot 12 a m ere technical, ballot -form atting m atter. Our review of the history of straight-ticket 13 votin g also reveals that our Le gislatur e rem oved any ref erence to straight-ticket 14 vot ing in our

E le ct ion Co de
. T his c anonl y be int er pr et ed a s ade ci sio n to r em ove the 15 opt ionf

ro m the ba llo t. 16 { 47} T he pe tit ionis gr an te d and the w ri t of m an da m us i ssu ed
.29

1 { 48} IT IS S O ORDERE D.

2

____ ____ ____ ____ ___ __ __ __ __ ________ _ 3 JUD ITH K. NA KAM UR A, Ch ief Justice

4 WE CO NCUR:

5

____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ 6 BARBAR

A J. VIGIL, Justice

7

____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ __ 8 PE TRAJIMEN EZMA ES, Justice, Re tired 9 Si tt in g b y d es ign at ion

10

____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ __ 11 CHA RLE S W. DA NIEL S, Justice, Re tired 12 Si tt in g b y d es ign at ion

13

____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ 14 BRET T R . LO V EL ES S, Ju dg e 15 Si tt in g b y d es ign at ion