Editor’s note: This story is based on information found on the website of the Chaves County Clerk’s Office.
Early voting for the Nov. 3 general election begins Tuesday, Oct. 6 in Chaves County and throughout New Mexico.
Four of New Mexico’s five congressional seats will be on the ballot, including the U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Ben Ray Luján, who is seeking to fend off a challenge from Republican Larry Marker of Roswell.
All three New Mexico seats in the U.S. House of Representatives will be up for reelection this cycle. Chaves County is split among all three districts.
Seven statewide executive offices will be on the ballot, including governor. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, is term-limited. Among those contests is an open race for New Mexico public land commissioner, featuring Republican nominee Michael Perry, a Roswell resident.
Perry faces Democrat Juan De Jesus Sanchez III for the commissioner seat. Stephanie Garcia Richard, a Democrat and the current commissioner, is unable to seek reelection because of term limits and is instead the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor.
In addition to candidates, Chaves County voters will weigh in on four proposed state constitutional amendments, three general obligation bonds and a proposed countywide Local Economic Development Act Gross Receipts Tax to fund economic development incentives.
New Mexico law allows counties to levy an increase in the gross receipts tax of up to one-eighth of 1%, or an additional 12.5 cents for every $100 of taxable gross receipts. Revenue from the tax would go toward economic development plans and projects, including retail businesses, cultural facilities and arts and cultural districts. The tax would expire after five years.
Here’s where and when to vote early.
Early voting in person
Early voting will be available at the Chaves County Clerk’s Office from Oct. 6 to Oct. 31, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays, Oct. 17 to Oct. 31, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. A second early voting location will open Oct. 17 at the Roswell Mall.
The Dexter Central Office and Hagerman Joy Center will have early voting from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, Oct. 20-29.
Chaves County voters can vote at any of those locations regardless of where they live.
Early voting sites will be closed Monday, Oct. 12 for Indigenous Peoples Day.
Absentee voting
Absentee ballots will be mailed out from Oct. 6 to Oct. 20. Voters can request an absentee ballot by filling out a form on the Secretary of State’s website or going to the Chaves County Clerk’s Office between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Oct. 20 is also the final day to request an absentee ballot.
Voters can return completed ballots in the postage-paid envelopes that came with them by mailing them or dropping them off at the Clerk’s Office, one of the county’s two secure, monitored drop boxes or any polling location. Ballots must be received by the Clerk’s Office by 7 p.m. Nov. 3 to be counted.
The county’s two drop box locations include one on the southwest side of the Chaves County Administrative Building, 1 St. Mary’s Place in Roswell, and the other in the parking lot of the Chaves County Courthouse, 401 N. Virginia Ave., Roswell.
Same-day voter registration
Mail-in and online voter registration for the Nov. 3 general election closes Oct. 6, but people can still register before casting a ballot at any location during the early voting period or on Election Day.
People registering the same day must show a physical form of ID issued by the state or federal government with the full name and photograph of the person being registered.
The ID must also include a physical address matching the one on the voter registration form, or be accompanied by a document issued by a government or educational institution and dated within the last 90 days that contains the person’s full name and address. Acceptable documents include a government check, bank statement, utility bill or paycheck.
Election Day
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, at 13 voting convenience centers in Chaves County.
Roswell
- Roswell Mall — 4501 N. Main St.
- Del Norte Elementary — 2701 N. Garden Ave.
- West Country Club Church of Christ — 700 W. Country Club Road
- St. Andrew’s Church — 505 N. Pennsylvania Ave.
- Mesa Middle School — 1601 E. Bland St.
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — 1615 W. College Blvd.
- East Grand Plains Elementary — 3773 E. Grand Plains Road
- El Capitan Elementary — 2807 E. Bland St.
- Chaves County Clerk’s Office — 1 St. Mary’s Place
- Church on the Move — 901 W. Brasher Road
Dexter
Dexter Central Office — 100 Lincoln Ave.
Hagerman
Hagerman Joy Center — 503 E. Argyle St.
Lake Arthur
Lake Arthur Municipal Schools — 700 W. Broadway St.
Who’s on the ballot?
Local races
Chaves County Commission District 1
J. Shay Wagner (unopposed) — Republican
Chaves County Commission District 5
Will Cavin (unopposed) — Republican
Chaves County Sheriff
Michael Taylor (unopposed) — Republican
Chaves County Assessor
Sandra Stewart (incumbent, unopposed) — Republican
Probate Judge
Eric Coll (unopposed) — Republican
Magistrate Judge Division 1
Jonathan Duecker (unopposed) — Republican
Magistrate Judge Division 2
James Mason (incumbent) — Republican
Fifth Judicial District Judge Division 1
David Finger (retention) — Republican
Fifth Judicial District Judge Division 5
Eileen Riordan (unopposed) — Republican
Fifth Judicial District Judge Division 7
Michael Harold Stone (retention) — Republican
Fifth Judicial District Judge Division 10
Dustin Hunter (retention) — Republican
New Mexico Senate District 33
William Griffin — Democrat
Rex Wilson — Republican
New Mexico House District 54
Jonathan Henry (unopposed) — Republican
New Mexico House District 58
Angelita Mejia (unopposed) — Republican
New Mexico House District 59
Stephen Dodson (unopposed) — Republican
New Mexico House District 64
Andrea Reeb (unopposed) — Republican
New Mexico House District 66
Leanne Gandy (unopposed) — Republican
Statewide races
U.S. Senate
Ben Ray Luján (incumbent) — Democrat
Larry Marker — Republican
U.S. House District 1
Ndidiamaka Okpareke — Republican
Melanie Stansbury (incumbent) — Democrat
U.S. House District 2
Gregg Cunningham — Republican
Gabe Vasquez (incumbent) — Democrat
U.S. House District 3
Teresa Leger Fernandez (incumbent) — Democrat
Martin Zamora — Republican
Governor/Lieutenant Governor
Deb Haaland/Stephanie Garcia Richard — Democrat
Gregg Hull/David Gallegos — Republican
Secretary of State
Amanda Lopez Askin — Democrat
Ramona Goolsby — Republican
Attorney General
Raul Torrez (incumbent) — Democrat
Samuel Kane — Republican
State Auditor
Joseph Maestas (incumbent) — Democrat
Joshua Lawrence — Republican
State Treasurer
Laura Montoya (incumbent) — Democrat
James Ellison — Republican
Public Land Commissioner
Michael Perry — Republican
Juan De Jesus Sanchez III — Democrat
New Mexico Supreme Court
Shannon Bacon (retention) — Democrat
David Thomson (retention) — Democrat
Constitutional amendments
Constitutional Amendment 1: Require that all bills passed by the Legislature and not vetoed by the governor become law and that all vetoed bills include a veto message
Constitutional Amendment 2: Eliminate the requirement that school elections be separate from partisan elections
Constitutional Amendment 3: Establish nominating committees to provide the governor with lists of nominees for appointment of nonstudent members to boards of regents of state educational institutions
Constitutional Amendment 4: Allow New Mexico state legislators to receive compensation equal to the median household income within the state
