2023 New Mexico Statutes › Chapter 1 - Elections › Article 6 - Absentee Voting › Section 1-6-5.7 - Early voting; use of absentee voting procedures; county clerk's office; alternate voting locations.

A. Commencing on the twenty-eighth day preceding the election during the regular hours and days of business at the county clerk's office and on the Saturday immediately prior to the date of the election, early voting shall be conducted in each office of the county clerk; provided that:
(1) when marking a ballot in person at the county clerk's office, the voter shall provide the required voter identification to the county clerk or the clerk's authorized representative. If the voter does not provide the required voter identification, the voter shall be allowed to vote on a provisional ballot. If the voter provides the required voter identification, the voter, after subscribing an application for an absentee ballot, shall be allowed to vote by inserting the ballot into an optical scan tabulator certified for in-person absentee voting at the county clerk's office. The county clerk or the clerk's authorized representative shall make an appropriate designation indicating that the voter has voted. In marking the ballot, the voter may be assisted pursuant to the provisions of Section 1-12-15 NMSA 1978;
(2) the act of marking the ballot in the office of the county clerk shall be a convenience to the voter in the delivery of the ballot and does not make the office of the county clerk a polling place subject to the requirements of a polling place in the Election Code;
(3) in addition to the regular business hours and days of business of the county clerk's office and on the Saturday immediately prior to the date of the election, early voting may be conducted in each office of the county clerk no earlier than 7:00 a.m. and shall close no later than 9:00 p.m. and shall be available for at least eight consecutive hours each day; and not later than ninety days before each statewide election, the county clerk shall post the location and hours of operation at the county clerk's office and shall not modify the location or hours of operation of early voting at the county clerk's office except with the written approval of the secretary of state and upon posting the approved changes; and
(4) if the county clerk establishes an additional alternate voting location near the clerk's office, ballots may be marked in person at that location during the regular hours and days of business beginning on the twenty-eighth day preceding the election and during the hours for voting at alternate voting locations commencing on the third Saturday prior to the election through the Saturday immediately prior to the election. The additional alternate voting location may be operated by the county clerk and the county clerk's staff.
B. Commencing on the third Saturday prior to a statewide election and ending on the Saturday immediately prior to the date of the election, an early voter may vote in person on a voting system at alternate voting locations that may be established by the county clerk; provided that:
(1) the county clerk shall establish:
(a) in counties with more than ten thousand voters, not fewer than one alternate voting location;
(b) in counties with more than fifty thousand voters, not fewer than four alternate voting locations; and
(c) in counties with more than one hundred fifty thousand voters, not fewer than fifteen alternate voting locations; and
(2) not later than ninety days before each statewide election, the county clerk shall post the location and hours of operation for early voting locations in the county, which shall open no earlier than 7:00 a.m. and shall close no later than 9:00 p.m. Within ninety days of a statewide election, a county clerk shall not modify the location or hours of operation of early voting locations except with the written approval of the secretary of state and upon posting the approved changes. Early voting locations shall be open each day of early voting for at least eight consecutive hours. Alternate voting locations may be closed Sundays and Mondays during the early voting period.
C. Each early voting location shall comply with the following provisions, unless the county clerk receives a written waiver from the secretary of state specifying the location and specific provision being waived:
(1) have ballots available for voters from every precinct in the county;
(2) have at least one optical scan tabulator programmed to read every ballot style in the county;
(3) have at least one voting system available to assist disabled voters to cast and record their votes;
(4) have a broadband internet connection;
(5) have sufficient spaces for at least five voters to simultaneously and privately mark their ballots, with at least one of those spaces wheelchair-accessible;
(6) have a secure area for storage of pre-printed ballots or for storage of a paper ballot stock and a system designed to print ballots at a polling location; and
(7) be in a location that is accessible and compliant with the requirements of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
D. When voting at an early voting location, the voter shall provide the required voter identification to the election board, county clerk or the clerk's authorized representative. If the voter does not provide the required voter identification, the voter shall be allowed to vote on a provisional ballot. If the voter provides the required voter identification, the voter shall be allowed to vote after subscribing an application to vote on a form approved by the secretary of state or its electronic equivalent approved by the voting system certification committee. The county clerk or the clerk's authorized representative shall make an appropriate designation on the signature roster or register next to the voter's name indicating that the voter has voted early.
History:
Laws 2005, ch. 270, § 40; 2009, ch. 251, § 8; 2011, ch. 137, § 42; 2019, ch. 212, § 66; 2023, ch. 39, § 25.
ANNOTATIONS
Cross references.
— For the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990,
see
titles 29, 42 and 47 of the U.S. Code.
The 2023 amendment,
effective June 16, 2023, revised the times and dates for early voting, and prohibited the modification of location or hours of operation of early voting at the county clerk's office except with written approval of the secretary of state and upon posting of the approved changes; in Subsection A, after "at the county clerk's office and", deleted "from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.", added a new Paragraph A(3) and redesignated former Paragraph A(3) as Paragraph A(4); and in Subsection B, Paragraph B(2), after "a county clerk", deleted "may" and added "shall".
The 2019 amendment,
effective April 3, 2019, revised the period during which early voting is allowed; deleted former Subsection A and redesignated former Subsection B as Subsection A; in Subsection A, after the subsection designation, added "Commencing on the twenty-eighth day preceding the election during the regular hours and days of business at the county clerk's office and from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on the Saturday immediately prior to the date of the election", and after "county clerk;", deleted "and at such alternate voting locations as may be established by the county clerk", added Paragraphs A(1) through A(3); in Subsection B, added "Commencing on the third Saturday prior to a statewide election and ending on the Saturday immediately prior to the date of the election, an early voter may vote in person on a voting system at alternate voting locations that may be established by the county clerk; provided that:", and redesignated former Paragraphs B(1) through B(3) as Subparagraphs B(1)(a) through B(1)(c), respectively, former Subsection C as Paragraph B(2), and former Subsections D and E as Subsections C and D, respectively; in Paragraph B(2), after "operation for", deleted "alternate" and added "early", after "operation of", deleted "alternate" and added "early", and after "secretary of state", deleted "Alternate" and added "and upon posting the approved changes. Early"; in Subsection C, in the introductory clause, after "Each", deleted "alternate" and added "early"; and in Subsection D, after "identification to the", added "election board", and after "secretary of state", added "or its electronic equivalent approved by the voting system certification committee".
The 2011 amendment,
effective July 1, 2011, eliminated the requirement that the county clerk in class A counties establish alternate voting locations; required county clerks to establish the number of alternate voting locations that is specified in this section for the number of voters in the county; and required county clerks to provide for the storage of preprinted ballots and paper ballot stock and to provide a system to print ballots at polling locations.
The 2009 amendment,
effective June 19, 2009, in Subsection A, after "prior to an election", added "and ending on the Saturday immediately preceding the election"; in Subsection B, deleted the former last sentence that provided for the times and days for early voting alternative locations; and added Subsections C and D.