Bill to allow independents to vote in primaries passes first committee

A bill to allow unaffiliated voters to participate in primary elections without having to register for a major party advanced Wednesday through the Senate Rules Committee on a 6-3 vote. The bill, sponsored in the upper chamber by Sens. Natalie Figuroa (D-Albuquerque) and Majority Floor Leader Peter Wirth (D-Santa Fe), now heads to its second committee: Senate Judiciary.

Sen. Crystal Brantley (R-Elephant Butte) sided with Democrats in the vote on Senate Bill 16, saying she represents the people in her district, not just Republicans. 

“This election systems change favors people over politics,” Brantley said. “And that’s what we need in New Mexico”

Sila Avcil, the executive director of the nonprofit NM Voters First, one of the organizations backing the bill, told Source NM after the meeting that this bill will open up crucial elections for the more than 330,000 registered voters unaffiliated with parties. (By the numbers, that’s 23% of registered voters.)

New Mexico has what’s known as a closed primary system, which requires voters to be registered with one of the state’s major parties in order to participate in those parties’ contests. Law changes in the last few years allow those independent voters who want to vote to use same-day registration to change their affiliation to one of the state’s major parties – Democrat, Republican or Libertarian – to participate in primary elections. 

“Our bill removes the requirement of same-day registration for independent voters,” Avcil said. “They would just show up to the polling location and request to vote in whichever-party’s primary.” 

The bill had originally included similar provisions for members of minor parties such as the Green Party, Party for Socialism and Liberation and Free NM Party to vote in major party primaries.

Sen Katy Duhigg (D-Albuquerque) suggested an amendment to strike all references to minor parties from the bill, since they already have processes to determine which minor party candidates are on the ballot for primary and general elections. 

“I don’t see anything in this bill that would disallow from both participating in that process and participating in a major party primary,” she said. “That would essentially be allowing them to double-dip in a primary.”

Testimony in support of the bill during the committee included Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, the Santa Fe County Clerk Katharine Clark, nonprofits such as Conservation Voters New Mexico, NM Native Vote and Common Cause New Mexico. 

“I and my team have long been supporters of allowing folks who are not registered with a major party to participate in the primaries,” Tolouse Oliver said. “What we know is participation begets participation.”

Sandoval County Republican Party Chair Beth Dowling objected to the bill and said the current system works.

“We have same-day registration,” she said, “which is open to all voters in the state.”

Nonetheless, access to the primary is crucial as elections become less competitive and elections often end after the primaries for candidates with no competition in the general election, Avcil said. 

“Rather than the primaries determining who represents the party, they can end up determining who will represent the entire district,” Avcil said.