2023 New Mexico Statutes › Chapter 1 - Elections › Article 4 - Registration of Electors › Section 1-4-27.1 - Eligibility to vote and register to vote upon release.

A. A voter is ineligible to vote while imprisoned in a correctional facility as part of a sentence for a felony conviction. Except as provided in this section, an otherwise qualified elector is ineligible to register to vote while imprisoned in a correctional facility as part of a sentence for a felony conviction.
B. During the reentry phase of an inmate's sentence, if the inmate is a voter or otherwise a qualified elector, the inmate shall be given an opportunity to register to vote or update an existing registration by means of a transaction with the motor vehicle division of the taxation and revenue department prior to the inmate's release from custody. If the inmate does not conduct a transaction with the motor vehicle division of the taxation and revenue department prior to the inmate's release from custody, the corrections department shall provide the inmate an opportunity to register to vote or update an existing registration by means of an online portal provided by the secretary of state or, if such a portal is not available, by means of a paper registration form.
C. The corrections department shall deliver to the secretary of state information and data necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. The secretary of state shall maintain current information in the statewide voter registration electronic management system on the ineligibility status of an inmate to vote or register to vote pursuant to this section, as well as an inmate's eligibility status to vote upon release and to register to vote or update an existing voter registration while preparing for release.
D. Notwithstanding a person's status in the statewide voter registration electronic management system, a voter or a qualified elector who appears personally before a county clerk, the clerk's authorized representative or a precinct board member, at an office of the motor vehicle division of the taxation and revenue department or at a state agency that provides public assistance or services to persons with disabilities is presumed to meet the eligibility requirement of non-imprisonment for voting and registering to vote pursuant to the provisions of this section.
E. For the purposes of this section, "correctional facility" means a jail, prison or other detention facility that is used for the confinement of an adult, whether operated by the state or a political subdivision of the state or a private contractor on behalf of the state or a political subdivision of the state.
History:
Laws 2001, ch. 46, § 1; 2005, ch. 116, § 1; 2007, ch. 337, § 7; 2011, ch. 137, § 35; 2023, ch. 84, § 6.
ANNOTATIONS
The 2023 amendment,
effective July 1, 2023, removed provisions related to cancellation of voter registration following conviction of a felony, and provided that inmates are eligible to vote and register to vote upon release from a correctional facility; in the section heading, deleted "Cancellation of registration following conviction", after "Eligibility", deleted "for voting upon satisfaction of conditions", and added "to vote and register to vote upon release"; and deleted former Subsections A through E and added new Subsections A through E.
The 2011 amendment,
effective July 1, 2011, rewrote the conditions that permit a convicted felon to register to vote and required the secretary of state to maintain the eligibility status of convicted felons to register to vote.
The 2007 amendment,
effective July 1, 2007, provided procedures for canceling voter registration for felony convictions and for notification of eligibility for registration upon discharge from a correctional facility; and added Subsections E and F.
The 2005 amendment,
effective June 17, 2005, in Subsection A, provided that the clerk of the district court shall file a certificate of felony conviction with the secretary of state and the secretary of state shall notify the county clerk of the county in which the convicted felon is registered to vote; in Subsection D, provided that when the convicted felon has completed the conditions of deferral or suspension of sentence, the clerk of the court shall notify the secretary of state and the secretary of state shall notify all county clerks that the person is eligible for registration; in Subsection E, provided that when a convicted felon is discharged from a correctional facility or completed all conditions of parole or probation, the corrections department shall notify the secretary of state and the secretary of state shall notify all county clerks that the person is eligible for registration; and in Subsection F, provided that when a voter convicted of a federal felony is unconditionally discharged from a correctional facility or has completed all conditions of parole or probation, the federal agency having jurisdiction of the person shall notify secretary of state and the secretary of state shall notify all county clerks that the person is eligible for registration.