A candidate for Doña Ana County magistrate judge whose petition signatures were challenged in court did gather enough valid signatures to qualify and will appear on the ballot for the June primary, a district judge has ruled.
Judge Jerald A. Valentine ruled Wednesday that Frank Rivera submitted 135 valid signatures. He needed 128 to qualify for the ballot.
Rivera could not immediately be reached for comment.
In validating Rivera’s candidacy, Valentine found that 46 of the 181 signatures Rivera collected were invalid, but he still had enough to stay on the ballot.
Rivera’s candidacy had been challenged by Nancy Abeyta, a Democratic voter who has been campaigning on behalf of Maria E. Rodriguez, one of Rivera’s opponents in the June primary. Abeyta’s attorney argued that Rivera submitted signatures from people who aren’t registered Democrats, and said at least two were duplicates and one included a signature but no other information about the individual who signed.
The other candidates in the Democratic primary for magistrate judge are Francisco Ortiz and incumbent Kent Wingenroth.