Voting in New Mexico

Election Information
2026 election and voting dates
Voter registration
Early voting
Absentee/mail-in voting
All-mail voting
Voter ID laws
State poll opening and closing times
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Voting policies are enacted and enforced primarily at the state level. These policies, which include voter identification requirements, early voting provisions, online voter registration systems, and more, dictate the conditions under which American citizens cast their ballots in their individual states.

THE BASICS

New Mexico allows early voting and no-excuse absentee voting.

Online voter registration is also available to New Mexico voters.

Voters in New Mexico are generally not required to present identification at the polls.

See state election laws

Voter registration

To vote in New Mexico, one must be a resident of New Mexico and a citizen of the United States. A voter must be at least 18 years old by the time of the next election.

Applicants must register at least 28 days prior to the election in order to vote. Either the New Mexico Certificate of Registration form or the National Voter Registration Form may be used to register. Completed registration materials can be mailed to election officials. First-time applicants must attach a valid form of identification to their registration materials. Registration can also be completed online.

Online registration

See also: Online voter registration

New Mexico has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.

Voting in elections

President Barack Obama and others casting their ballots in 2012

Voter identification

See also: Voter identification laws by state

A New Mexico voter must show identification at the polls only if he or she mailed his or her registration application and did not provide verification of his or her identity at that time. Valid forms of identification include photo and non-photo forms.

Thirty-six states require voters to present identification in order to vote at the polls on Election Day. Of these states, 24 require voters to present identification containing a photograph, and 12 accept other forms of identification. The remaining 14 states do not require voters to present identification in order to vote at the polls on Election Day.

Valid forms of identification differ by state. In certain states that require voters to provide identification, there may be exceptions that allow some voters to cast a ballot without providing an ID. To see more about these exceptions, see details by state. Commonly accepted forms of ID include driver's licenses, state-issued identification cards, and military identification cards.

Poll times

See also: State poll opening and closing times

In New Mexico, all polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Mountain Time on Election Day. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.

Primary election type

See also: Primary elections in New Mexico

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. New Mexico utilizes a semi-closed primary process; participation in each party's primary is limited to registered party members and unaffiliated voters.

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Note: Presidential primary and caucus types can differ. See this article for further details about 2016 presidential primaries and caucuses.

Absentee voting

See also: Absentee voting

All voters are eligible to vote absentee in New Mexico. There are no special eligibility requirements for voting absentee.

The county clerk must receive the absentee ballot application no later than the 14th day before the election. A voter may request an absentee ballot by filling out and returning an application form, or by completing an online application. Completed ballots must be returned to the county clerk or voter's precinct before 7 p.m. on Election Day in order to be counted.

Early voting

See also: Early voting

New Mexico permits early voting. Learn more by visiting this website.

Convicted felons' voting rights

See also: Voting rights for convicted felons

Voting rights for convicted felons vary from state to state. In the majority of states, convicted felons cannot vote while they are incarcerated but may regain the right to vote upon release from prison or at some point thereafter.

Felon voting rights in New Mexico
State	Felon voting rights

Election administration costs

National Conference of State Legislatures report, 2018

On February 14, 2018, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) released a report on the costs of election administration in the states: "The Price of Democracy: Splitting the Bill for Elections." The report's authors noted that "no one knows how much [states] spend on elections ... [because] good research on election costs is slim." Generally, local units of government (most often counties, but sometimes cities and towns) are primarily responsible for election administration costs, though states and the federal government may also contribute. The report identified the states listed in the table below as assuming financial responsibility for at least some aspects of election administration.

To access the complete NCSL report, click here.

Election administration costs assumed by state
State pays all expenses for federal or state elections	State bears a portion of election costs	State pays for statewide special elections or statewide elections that don’t coincide with regularly scheduled elections	State pays for primary elections (statewide, presidential, or both)
Alaska Delaware	Alabama Colorado Hawaii Kentucky Louisiana Rhode Island	Arkansas Florida Iowa Michigan Missouri New Jersey North Dakota Ohio Oregon Pennsylvania Tennessee Washington West Virginia	Arizona Arkansas Idaho Kansas Michigan Minnesota Missouri South Carolina Tennessee Texas Virginia Washington
Note: If a state is not listed above, it was not included in the report. Source: National Conference of State Legislatures, "The Price of Democracy: Splitting the Bill for Elections," February 14, 2018

Election agencies

Seal of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission

See also: State election agencies

Individuals seeking additional information about voting provisions in New Mexico can contact the following state and federal agencies.

New Mexico Secretary of State: Elections Division

325 Don Gaspar, Suite 300

Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501-4401

Phone: 505-827-3600

Email: elections@state.nm.us

U.S. Election Assistance Commission

1335 East West Highway, Suite 4300

Silver Spring, Maryland 20910

Telephone: 866-747-1471

Election policy ballot measures

See also: Elections and campaigns on the ballot and List of New Mexico ballot measures

Ballotpedia has tracked the following ballot measures relating to election and campaign policy in New Mexico.

1. New Mexico Amendment 4 (1996)
2. New Mexico Amendment 3 (1996)
3. New Mexico Amendment 2 (1996)
4. New Mexico Rules for County Officials in their Second Terms, Amendment 3 (1998)
5. New Mexico Modern Election Language Amendment, Amendment 3 (2010)
6. New Mexico School Elections Act, Amendment 4 (2008)
7. New Mexico Runoff Elections, Measure 3 (2004)
8. New Mexico School Board, Amendment 1 (2008)
9. New Mexico Dates for School Elections, Amendment 1 (2014)
10. New Mexico Candidacy Declarations in Judicial Retention Elections, Amendment 3 (2014)
11. New Mexico Proposed Amendment 11, Voter Qualification (1994)
12. New Mexico Proposed Amendment 1, Absentee Voting (1940)
13. New Mexico Proposed Amendment, Absentee Voting (1958)
14. New Mexico Proposed Amendment, Joint Election of Governor and Lieutenant Governor (1962)
15. New Mexico Proposed Amendment, Absentee Voting, Removal of Voting Restrictions for Women and Indians (1964)
16. New Mexico Proposed Amendment, Municipal Bonds, Special Elections, Nonresident Voting (1964)
17. New Mexico Nominating Conventions for Candidates Referendum (1950)
18. New Mexico Nominating Conventions for Candidates Referendum (1964)

Election policy legislation

The following is a list of recent election bills that have been introduced in or passed by the New Mexico state legislature. To learn more about each of these bills, click the bill title. This information is provided by BillTrack50 and LegiScan.

Note: Due to the nature of the sorting process used to generate this list, some results may not be relevant to the topic. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation pertaining to this topic has been introduced in the legislature recently.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms New Mexico voting. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Voting in New Mexico - Google News

See also

• Ballot access requirements for political candidates in New Mexico
• Redistricting in New Mexico

Elections in New Mexico

• New Mexico elections, 2018
• New Mexico elections, 2017
• New Mexico elections, 2016
• New Mexico elections, 2015
• New Mexico elections, 2014

External links

• New Mexico Secretary of State