ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - New Mexico is seeing a surge in early voting, and the state’s top elections official said she expects the numbers to keep climbing as more voting locations are opened this weekend.
Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver said Thursday some of the largest turnout is being reported in Dona Ana County, where more than 6,500 residents had cast ballots via absentee ballots or in person as of Wednesday, the majority being registered Democrats.
An open congressional seat covering much of southern New Mexico is helping to drive turnout, Toulouse Oliver said, noting that the border county was among those with the lowest early turnout during the 2014 election.
Other trends also are being bucked, as Democrats outpace Republicans when it comes to both absentee and early in-person voting. State election officials say Republicans traditionally lead in absentee voting.
“Obviously we’ll have to see when the satellite locations open up if that tends to even out,” Toulouse Oliver said.
Early voting for the general election began Oct. 9 with absentee and in-person voting at county clerks’ offices. Dozens more locations are scheduled to open Saturday, kicking off countywide early voting through Nov. 3.
Dona Ana County Clerk Amanda Lopez Askin said about 6 percent of registered voters have already turned out in her county.
“I’m thrilled and as excited as I could possibly be because it’s a good position to be in, in terms of seeing democracy in action in a big way,” she said.
Aside from a competitive gubernatorial race and key congressional seats at stake, Lopez Askin and others say it has been a combination of factors that led to increased voter engagement. Those factors ranged from more volunteer groups registering voters and more government-sponsored voter education via social media to the attention on national politics.
“I think we are in this polarized, divided, very raw and emotional place politically in this country and I think people are very engaged and are paying close attention,” said Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat running for re-election.
Toulouse Oliver was in Albuquerque to provide a panel of state lawmakers an update on election matters, including priorities for the next legislative session. The secretary of state’s office will be seeking more funding next year and the debate around election law is expected to center partly on New Mexico’s closed primary.
New Mexico is one of few states with a closed primary system, which prevents the state’s independent voters from casting ballots in major-party primaries.
Toulouse Oliver said an open primary is overdue and she hopes it can happen during the 60-day legislative beginning in January. She said party primaries are funded with taxpayer dollars and that the current system discourages independent voters.
Rep. Eliseo Alcon, D-Milan, opposes open primaries. He said that would give voters not aligned with either party an opportunity to undermine the process. He said voters should take a stand based on their beliefs and register as either Democrats or Republicans.
“They should have the guts to be one or the other,” Alcon said.
Sen. Jacob Candelaria, D-Albuquerque, said young voters are rejecting party labels and that the current system is resulting in disenfranchisement.
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