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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsNM Supreme Court Sides With GOP In Fight With Clerks Over COVID-19 Mail-In Voting
By Tierney Sneed
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April 15, 2020 11:12 a.m.
The New Mexico Supreme Court took the state GOPs side Monday in a dispute with New Mexico election officials over how broadly to expand mail-in voting for the states upcoming elections due to the pandemic.
The court issued its order after a two-hour-plus hearing, conducted over Zoom, the Las Cruces Sun News reported.
Twenty-seven local clerks with the backing of New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver (D) had sought the courts permission to essentially transform New Mexicos June 2 election into an entirely mail-in election (though in-person voting would be available to those who needed it).
Their lawyers told the court on Monday, according to Las Cruces Sun News, that the overhaul could not be done legislatively because calling a special session would require under law that legislators physically gather. They said they were merely asking the court to interpret existing election code rather than change the law, which already allows for special elections to be conducted via mail.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/nm-supreme-court-sides-with-gop-in-fight-with-clerks-over-covid-19-mail-in-voting
Absolutely amazing...............
SheltieLover
(57,073 posts)comradebillyboy
(10,119 posts)Went to my county gov web site and it took me 2 minutes. Despite being a blue state NM really isn't very liberal.
uponit7771
(90,225 posts)... but practice social distancing
PoindexterOglethorpe
(25,746 posts)I'm appalled. They met electronically. We have to vote in person.
Actually, New Mexico makes it extremely easy to vote. Lots of advance voting, plenty of locations, you can vote anywhere in your country rather than have to go to a specific precinct. They also make it easy to vote by mail. I went on line a couple of weeks ago and requested a mail-in/absentee ballot for our June primary. I will probably do the same for the November election.
Of course, not everyone has ready access to the internet or would even know how easy it is to get the mail-in ballot.
Every single state should go to all mail-in ballots.
Jake Stern
(3,145 posts)The problems are laws in place before the pandemic which fail to authorize changes in case of a state emergency.
rusty fender
(3,428 posts)fellow Dems did in Wisconsinvote with gloves and masks firmly on