I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
State Rep. Joseph Cervantes introduced a bill today that would allow people to register to vote on Election Day in New Mexico.
Under Cervantes’ House Bill 395 (which isn’t yet available online), New Mexico residents who are eligible to vote could register on Election Day at polling locations by showing photo identification and then vote immediately. Currently, the deadline in New Mexico to register and be eligible to vote in an election is weeks before Election Day.
“Unfortunately, the history of voter registration in the United States is a history of exclusion,” Cervantes said in a news release. “We have made great strides in providing access to all Americans to vote, and this bill is another step in ensuring that New Mexicans have every opportunity to participate in the electoral process. This legislation will also help eliminate the political games and misconduct, which have infected the process of voter registration.”
Cervantes’ news release said that research conducted by Demos, a non-partisan public policy research and advocacy organization, predicts that adoption of same-day registration would increase voter participation by 5.6 percent in New Mexico. Nine other states have already implemented same-day registration.
“County clerks know better than anyone the challenges in running elections and increasing voter participation,” Maggie Toulouse-Oliver, the Bernalillo County clerk, said in the news release. “I believe the successful passage of this bill is critical to improving access to the ballot and to putting voter registration back in the hands of county clerks and their staff.”
