Instant Runoff (Ranked Choice Voting) for Luna County.
What legal requirements would it take for Luna County to have ranked choice voting?
Claud AI:
Current New Mexico law (Section 1-22-16 NMSA 1978) specifically addresses "Municipal runoff elections" and allows municipalities to implement ranked choice voting
Municipalities can implement RCV through either:
City ordinance (if no charter)
Charter amendment (if they have a charter)
Santa Fe and Las Cruces have implemented RCV for municipal elections through charter amendments
Santa Fe County has implemented RCV for some local elections in 2025
The key question for Luna County is: Can counties (as opposed to municipalities) implement RCV under current law?
From what I can see:
The current statute (1-22-16) only explicitly addresses MUNICIPAL elections
Counties CAN adopt charters under Article X, Section 5 of the NM Constitution (the "incorporated counties" provision)
Bernalillo County has a home rule charter
But Luna County does not have a charter
So for Luna County to implement RCV, they would likely need either:
A change to state law to explicitly authorize county elections to use RCV (like municipalities currently can)
OR, Luna County would need to adopt a county charter that includes RCV provisions
Luna County, New Mexico, operates under the general laws of New Mexico, similar to most counties, rather than having a specific, distinct county charter like some larger or home-rule counties; instead, its governance framework comes from state statutes, its official website (lunacountynm.us) outlines its leadership (Commissioners), functions (Economic Development, Health Council), and provides access to public documents like ordinances, setting its local operational rules within state law.
Current Legal Situation
The challenge: Current New Mexico law (Section 1-22-16 NMSA 1978) specifically authorizes municipalities to implement RCV, but does not explicitly authorize counties to do so for county commission elections.
Municipalities can conduct ranked-choice runoff elections on the same ballot as regular local elections, allowing voters to rank candidates in order of preference Justia. Santa Fe adopted RCV for municipal elections via a 2008 city charter amendment Ballotpedia, and Las Cruces has done similarly.
Pathways for Luna County
Luna County would likely need one of the following to implement RCV:
Option 1: State Legislative Action (More Straightforward)
The New Mexico Legislature would need to pass a law explicitly authorizing counties to use ranked choice voting for county elections, similar to how municipalities currently have this authority. This would require:
A bill amending the Election Code to add county elections to the RCV provisions
Passage by both chambers of the legislature
Governor's signature
Note: There have been proposed constitutional amendments like SJR22 that would require ranked-choice voting for all nonpartisan elections and allow it for partisan elections New Mexico Legislature, though this hasn't been enacted yet.
Option 2: County Charter (More Complex)
Luna County could adopt a county charter under Article X, Section 5 of the New Mexico Constitution. Bernalillo County has a home rule charter and has made amendments to it Ballotpedia. This would require:
Charter Commission: Either by petition of 5% of registered voters OR by action of the County Commission
Luna County Voter Registration (November 2024):
Registered Voters (Eligible Voters): 40,595
Ballots Cast: 29,435
Turnout: 72.51%
So Luna County has approximately 40,595 registered voters.
For context on the charter petition requirement: If you wanted to initiate a county charter commission via petition, you'd need signatures from 5% of registered voters:
40,595 × 0.05 = ~2,030 signatures
Draft Charter: The commission would draft a charter (within 180 days) that includes RCV provisions for county elections
County Commission Approval: The draft charter must be approved by the County Commission
Voter Approval: The charter must be approved by a majority of Luna County voters in a special election
Legal Uncertainty: Even with a charter, there might be legal challenges since current state law doesn't explicitly address county RCV (unlike municipalities)
Practical Considerations
Voting Equipment: New Mexico has RCV-compatible voting equipment and software available
Cost: Implementing RCV requires voter education, potential equipment upgrades, and administrative adjustments
State Support: The Secretary of State's office has rules and procedures already in place for RCV elections (primarily for municipal use)
Recommendation
The most straightforward path would be advocating for state legislation to explicitly authorize counties to use RCV, similar to municipalities.
This could be done through:
Lobbying state legislators
Working with organizations like FairVote New Mexico or Common Cause New Mexico
Building a coalition of county officials interested in RCV
Search Considerations:
New Mexico Constitution Article X county charter ranked choice voting elections
Article X, New Mexico Constitution - Ballotpedia
ballotpedia.org
SJR22
nmlegis.gov
1.10.14 NMAC
New Mexico Constitution :: Article X - County and Municipal Corporations :: § 5 Incorporated counties.
justia.com
Ballot Questions and Ranked Choice Voting and Top-Two Runoff Election | Maggie Toulouse Oliver - New Mexico Secretary of State
nm.gov
Court clears way for ranked-choice voting in city election | Local News | santafenewmexican.com
santafenewmexican.com
Ranked Choice Voting - New Mexico Open Elections
nmopenelections.org
Electoral systems in New Mexico - Ballotpedia
ballotpedia.org
Article XX, New Mexico Constitution - Ballotpedia
ballotpedia.org
New Mexico Constitution Article VII § 1 - Qualifications of voters; absentee voting; school elections; registration. :: New Mexico Constitution :: Justia
justia.com
Investigated state law gaps and chartering pathways for county implementation.