RECAP: NM Voting Information

Here's a recap of what you need to know in order to vote in NM. You can access most of this information somewhere on this site, like the Voting section down a bit in the left-hand sidebar, but I thought I'd make it easy for you and put it all in one place.

VOTER REGISTRATION: You must have been registered to vote by October 5th (in your county clerk's office by October 7th) in order to vote in the November 2nd General Election. If you registered by mail, you should have included a photocopy of a valid ID with your registration. If not, you must provide the ID when you vote, including a photocopy of the ID in the outer envelope with your absentee ballot if you use one. This page at the Secretary of State's site has information about voter registration rules and the documents you may use for a valid ID.

ABSENTEE VOTING: From now until October 30th, you can vote early by absentee ballot. October 28th in the last day you can request an absentee ballot. You can get an application for an absentee ballot online or at various campaign offices and county clerk's offices. You must fill out the application and return it to the county clerk's office before October 28th. When they receive it, they will send you an absentee ballot that must be filled out EXACTLY according to instructions and mailed back or hand-delivered to the county clerk's office before October 30th.

Click for the online application for an absentee ballot. You can find the contact information and maps for the county clerk's office in every NM county at the following excellent site: Eager Voter Project.

EARLY VOTING AT SATELLITE LOCATIONS: Early electronic machine voting began October 16th and continues until October 30th in NM. In virtually every county you can vote at the county clerk's office and at least one other "satellite" location. You can click to take you to the Secretary of State's listing of early satellite voting places in each county and the hours they are open.

ELECTION DAY VOTING: On election day, November 2nd, polls around the state will be open from 7AM until 7PM. If you are in line by 7PM, you must be allowed to vote. To find the polling place for any precinct in New Mexico, click here for the Democratic National Committee's site and enter your zip code.

In Bernalillo County you can also go to the county clerk's office site for a listing of precinct polling places. In Sandoval County click here. In Santa Fe County click .

The NM Secretary of State's Office lists every polling place in the state by county and precinct. Your precinct is listed on your voter identification card. You can also call your county clerk's office to find out which precinct you are in. Again, the Eager Voter Project page provides contact information for every county in the state.

RIGHT TO A PROVISIONAL BALLOT: If you know you are registered to vote but your name doesn't show up on the precinct list when you go to vote on election day, you can insist on filling out a Provisional Ballot at your polling place. It will be determined later when the provisional ballots are counted whether you are actually a registered voter or not.

VOTER PROTECTION: A coalition of many civil rights organizations and People for the American Way provides a . If you encounter problems voting you can call their toll-free hotline at 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

Hispanic Americans who have questions about how to vote or about their voting rights can call a toll-free, bilingual, nonpartisan hotline at 1-888-839-8682 that's operated by The National Association of Latin American Elected Officials, Univision and the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund.

If you're interested in volunteering for a voter protection program, visit the People for the American Way's .

SAMPLE BALLOT AND INFO ON ISSUES, BALLOT QUESTIONS: The League of Women's Voters of New Mexico produces excellent, detailed voting guides and sample ballots each election for various counties. You can get a copy of their Guide in various locations around the state, or you can click here for an online version for your county as well as links to information on candidates and positions.