Old People in Tennis Shoes, New Rules: 370,000 New Mexico Independents Can Now Choose
\by Karen Wentworth
When I worked as a journalist many years ago for KOAT I covered the activities of many non-profit organizations. One of the most boring was the League of Women Voters. Year after year, they did the same things – put out Voter Guides with candidate questions and answers, registered voters, did educational events. Nice, but not an exciting group for a journalist to cover. They were sincere, and they always knew what they were talking about. Never the lead story on the 10 p.m. news.
I’ve come to appreciate that over the years. Quiet, steady, dependable. The League of Women Voters of Central New Mexico has been publishing Voter Guides since the early 1950s in Albuquerque. And we are still doing it. I’ve volunteered with the League and their efforts to educate voters for years now. It’s satisfying to work with an organization that tries hard to have the best information, especially in a turbulent, blaring world, where you don’t know quite what to believe any more. You can still count on the old people in tennis shoes (which we mostly are) to give you good information on the primary election.
The League of Women Voters of Central New Mexico will have an online Voter Guide available at VOTE411.org on April 29. You can put your address into the software and find out what the candidates in your districts are saying. We will also publish printed guides which will be available at local libraries, community centers, senior citizen centers and a number of local businesses during the first week in May.
This spring the League has published Voter Guides for Bernalillo and Sandoval Counties and for Torrance and Valencia Counties. We will also have PDF versions of the guides available on our website at www.lwvcnm.org
The guides contain information about early voting, questions and answers with candidates and information about who can vote and procedures for registering to vote. This is the first semi open primary election in New Mexico, which means the 370,000 independent (Decline to State) voters can choose whether to vote republican or democratic ballots.
If you are registered as a member of either party, you will be given a ballot for that party. If you are registered as an independent (Declined to State) voter, you may choose to vote either the republican or democratic ballot.
If you are registered as a Libertarian or Green Party member, you must change your registration to Republican, Democratic or DTS before you will be given a ballot. If you register DTS, you can choose either a republican or democratic ballot.
If you are not a registered voter, you will be asked to provide identification in order to register.
This includes
- A physical form of identification that is issued by the federal government, a state government, a federally recognized Indian nation, tribe or pueblo or an educational institution and that:
- Contains your name which should reasonably match the name provided on the certificate of registration and
- Contains your photograph which should resemble you
- Contain an address that matches the address provided for the certificate of registration or be accompanied by an original or copy of a utility bill, bank statement, government paycheck or other document issued by an educational institution or government, including a document issued by a federally recognized Indian nation, tribe or pueblo dated within the 90 days of registration.
Anyone with a question can call the League office at (505) 884-8441. Leave a message. You will receive a return call.
And if you are interested in joining a group that educates people about local elections, researches issues, moderates candidate forums and advocates for better government at all levels, you would be welcome at the League. We’ve got a place for you.
Karen McDaniel Wentworth, 1st Co-VP of the League of Women Voters of Central New Mexico, is a former journalist and worked as a reporter/producer at KOAT.
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