2023 New Mexico Statutes › Chapter 1 - Elections › Article 1 - Definitions and General Provisions › Section 1-1-7.2 - Petitions; nominations; signatures to be counted.

A. A person who signs a nominating petition shall sign only one petition for the same office unless more than one candidate is to be elected to that office, and in that case, a person may sign not more than the number of nominating petitions equal to the number of candidates to be elected to the office.
B. A person who signs a nominating petition shall indicate the person's registration address. If the person does not have a standard street address, the person may provide the mailing address as shown on the person's certificate of registration.
C. A signature shall be counted on a nominating petition unless there is evidence presented that the petition does not provide the information required by the nominating petition for each person signing or the person signing:
(1) is not a voter of the state, district, county or area to be represented by the office for which the person seeking the nomination is a candidate;
(2) has signed more than one petition for the same office, except as provided in Subsection A of this section, and if the person has signed more than one petition for the same office and in the same election cycle, none of the challenged signatures from that person shall count toward the total number of signatures required for any candidate for that office;
(3) has signed one petition more than once, in which case only one signature from that person shall count toward the total number of signatures required for that candidate for office;
(4) in a primary election, is not of the same political party as the candidate named in the nominating petition as shown by the signer's certificate of registration; or
(5) is not the person whose name appears on the nominating petition.
D. The procedures set forth in this section shall be used to validate signatures on any petition required by the Election Code, except that Paragraph (4) of Subsection C of this section shall not apply to petitions filed by unaffiliated candidates or petitions filed by candidates of minor political parties.
E. No later than January 1, 2024, the secretary of state shall implement a secure internet application, in addition to the paper circulation process, to gather electronic signatures in accordance with rules developed by the secretary of state. The secure internet application shall provide for the ability to verify that a person signing the petition is a registered voter and is eligible to sign the petition for a particular candidate.
History:
1953 Comp., § 3-8-24.2, enacted by Laws 1973, ch. 228, § 5; 1975, ch. 255, § 109; 1975, ch. 295, § 16; 1979, ch. 378, § 7; 1985, ch. 207, § 8; 1993, ch. 314, § 47; 1993, ch. 316, § 47; 1999, ch. 267, § 27; 2011, ch. 137, § 58; 2017, ch. 101, § 10; 1978 Comp., §1-8-31, recompiled and amended as § 1-1-7.2 by Laws 2019, ch. 212, § 9; 2023, ch. 39, § 4.
ANNOTATIONS
Recompilations.
— Laws 2019, ch. 212, § 9 recompiled and amended former 1-8-31 NMSA 1978 as 1-1-7.2 NMSA 1978, effective April 3, 2019.
The 2023 amendment,
effective June 16, 2023, required the secretary of state to implement a secure internet application to gather electronic signatures, which shall provide for the ability to verify that a person signing the petition is a registered voter and is eligible to sign the petition for a particular candidate; and added Subsection E.
The 2019 amendment,
effective April 3, 2019, revised the procedures for counting signatures on a nominating petition; in the section heading, deleted "Nominating petition" and added "Petitions; nominations"; in Subsection C, after "evidence presented that", added "the petition does not provide the information required by the nominating petition for each person signing or", deleted former Paragraph C(1) and redesignated former Paragraphs C(2) and C(3) as Paragraphs C(1) and C(2), in Paragraph C(2), after "Subsection A of this section", deleted "or has signed one petition more than once" and added the remainder of the paragraph, added a new Paragraph C(3), in Paragraph C(4), added "in a primary election"; and deleted former Subsections D and E and redesignated former Subsection F as Subsection D.
The 2017 amendment,
effective June 16, 2017, changed the requirements for the invalidation of nominating petitions; in the catchline, deleted "Primary Election Law"; in Subsection C, deleted Paragraph C(1), which stated "was not a registered member of the candidate's political party ten days prior to the filing of the nominating petition", and redesignated the succeeding paragraphs accordingly; in Subsection D, provided paragraph designations for each item that must be listed at the top of a nominating petition, in Paragraph D(2), after "the candidate's name", deleted "the candidate's address, the candidate's county of residence and", in Paragraph D(3), after "office sought by the candidate", deleted "which shall include", and added "and", in Paragraph D(4), after "the district", deleted "or division", after "office sought", added "or", and after "if", deleted "applicable" and added "the office sought is a judicial division office within a judicial district, the judicial division number"; designated the last sentence in former Subsection D as Subsection E and redesignated former Subsection E as Subsection F; in Subsection E, added "With or without a showing of fraud or reasonable opportunity for fraud", after "invalid if any of the", deleted "preceding", after "information", added "required by Subsection D of this section", after "not listed", added "on the petition", and after "if any of the", deleted "preceding" and added "required"; and in Subsection F, after "except that", deleted "Paragraphs (1) and (5)" and added "Paragraph (4)".
The 2011 amendment,
effective July 1, 2011, added Subsection D to list the information that is required to be listed on the nominating petition before it is signed by a voter.
The 1999 amendment,
effective June 18, 1999, added Subsection B, and redesignated subsequent subsections accordingly; in Subsection C, added Paragraph (1), redesignated subsequent paragraphs accordingly, and added the language ending "the person is qualified" at the beginning of Paragraph (2); and added the exception to Subsection D.
The 1993 amendment,
effective June 18, 1993, substituted "certificate" for "affidavit" in Subsection B(3).
Burden of proof.
— The burden is on the challenger to demonstrate that specific signatures should not be counted in a primary election nominating petition.
Ruiz v. Vigil-Giron
, 2008-NMSC-063, 145 N.M. 280, 196 P.3d 1286.
Failure to fill in entire line.
— This section does not include as a reason for disqualification the failure to fill in all blanks in a nominating petition.
Simmons v. McDaniel
, 1984-NMSC-049, 101 N.M. 260, 680 P.2d 977 (decided prior to 1999 amendment).
Scope of section.
— Although the title of this section is "Primary Election Law; nominating petition; signatures to be counted," it is obvious from the explicit language of Subsection C [now Subsection D] that the legislature intended this section to apply to all petitions required by the Election Code, including ballot access petitions.
Workers World Party v. Vigil-Giron
, 693 F. Supp. 989 (D.N.M. 1988).
Variance between petition and registration.
— This section does not include as a reason for disqualification the failure to provide on the petition the signatory's name or address printed as registered. Therefore, where a county clerk automatically excluded signatures of registered voters whose names and addresses on the petitions varied somewhat or differed from their affidavits of registration, there was a failure to comply with the statutory requirements.
Workers World Party v. Vigil-Giron
, 693 F. Supp. 989 (D.N.M. 1988).
Signature to contain address, etc., to be valid.
— Any signature on a nominating petition not containing the address, county and precinct number of the elector is invalid. 1952 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 52-5486 (opinion rendered under former law).