Heath Haussamen / NMPolitics.net
A voting kiosk
The New Mexico Supreme Court rejected on Wednesday an effort by Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver to include a straight-party voting option on the general election ballot this fall.
The unanimous decision at a hearing in Santa Fe makes clear that the secretary of state does not have the authority to include an option to fill in one oval on a ballot to vote for every candidate on that ballot from a major party. Only the Legislature has the power to put that option on the ballot.
“This power is theirs alone, and the Legislature has indicated its intent to thoroughly regulate how ballots appear,” Chief Justice Judith Nakamura was quoted by the Albuquerque Journal as saying during the hearing.
Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat, said she accepted the decision. A wide-ranging coalition had sued to stop her attempt to reinstate straight-party voting, arguing that it was an attempt to give Democrats, the state’s majority party, an unfair advantage.
But the secretary of state, who says her move was about making it easier for people to vote, called the Court’s decision “a disappointing blow to voter access in New Mexico.”
“We should be expanding voting rights and accessibility but, instead, this decision limits the options voters have when casting their ballots and makes voting less convenient,” Toulouse Oliver said.
She said she was “recommitting” to expanding voter access by “advocating for policies such as same-day voter registration, open primaries, and — potentially — vote at home initiatives,” and added that she hopes “those who have opposed the straight-party option, but at the same time claim to support increased voter accessibility, will work with me to enact these important policies that will help more voters’ voices be heard at the polls.”
Meanwhile, others applauded the Court’s decision.
“Today’s ruling is also good news for New Mexicans of all parties, or no party, who are tired of arrogant machine politics and who don’t want to see public officials weaponizing their offices for partisan advantage,” said Gavin Clarkson, Toulouse Oliver’s Republican opponent in the upcoming election.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Pearce called the Court’s decision “a victory for the rule of law.” And state GOP Chairman Ryan Cangiolosi, in praising the ruling, said, “Our democracy is built on the principle of free and fair elections, not corrupt partisan maneuvering that leads to one-party control.”
A prior version of this article incorrectly stated that a wide-ranging coalition had condemned the Court’s decision, rather than condemning Toulouse Oliver’s attempt to reinstate straight-party voting. The article has been updated to correct that error.