The Doña Ana County Board of Commissioners today certified the results of last week’s spaceport tax election.
On a vote of 5-0, commissioners approved the final results. Voter approved the tax by 270 votes, or a difference of 1.6 percent, out of 17,770 votes cast. The final count had 9,020 votes in favor of and 8,750 votes against imposing a 1/4 percent gross-receipts tax increase to help fund Spaceport America.
The approval came only after Paul Borunda of
Commission Chairwoman Karen Perez apologized to Borunda.
“It breaks my heart that there may have been somebody that was not allowed to vote,” she said.
Borunda said he has filed a complaint with the secretary of state’s office, but no state official has yet contacted the county. Elections Supervisor Lynn Ellins and County Attorney John Caldwell said they have looked into the situation and did not find allegations of widespread mistakes or of anyone else being denied the right to vote.
Ellins said he spoke with the presiding judge at the precinct where Borunda’s daughter allegedly tried to vote, a man who has been a poll worker for 11 years.
“He says that no one was turned away,” Ellins said, adding that Borunda’s daughter would not have been offered a provisional ballot because her name was on the roster. He also noted that two provisional ballots were accepted at that polling place on Election Day.
“So it’s sort of a he-said, she said situation, only I haven’t heard from her yet, or anyone else about irregularities,” Ellins said.
Ellins pledged further investigation if the state wants it, and said he would write a letter to Borunda informing him of the results.
As to the election, Tamie Smith of
“This election was hardly a mandate, so you better be sure you guys do it right, and you better be sure those promises materialize,” she said.
Mitch Boyer of Vado, one of the leaders of the opposition to the tax, said a private donor offered to fund a recount, but the group believes the election was run with integrity and did not doubt the results.