Did you know that several local elections have been settled with a difference of one or two votes over the past few years? If you ever need a few examples of why a single vote matters, there are plenty of examples.
The Permian Strategic Partnership is currently running a “Get out the Vote” campaign in both New Mexico and Texas. Despite our area’s massive importance when it comes to energy issues, our voter turnout is not always what we would like it to be. A high voter turnout will help ensure that our area is well represented at all levels. According to PSP, many counties in the Permian Basin are only showing a ten percent voting rate.
This year’s election is at the municipal level. In many ways, municipal elections have the most direct impact on our lives. Local votes have an impact on our roads, our regulations and our decisions on where to invest our resources. We support PSP’s effort to encourage more people to register to vote and to vote. In addition to city elections, there will be a variety of other ballot items this year including school board and several water boards. Carlsbad also has multiple contested races, so your vote makes a difference.
The last day to register to vote this year is Tuesday, Oct. 10. There’s information about how to register to vote through the Eddy County Bureau of Elections, which is located at 325 S. Main Street. You can also call them at (575) 885-3383 or visit http://www.co.eddy.nm.us/219/Elections-Voter-Information
In person absentee voting will run from Oct. 10 through Nov. 4. The last day to apply for a ballot by mail is Oct. 24. Election Day itself will be on Nov. 7, 2023.
Both the County and the Secretary of State’s office have great resources on voting. You can also visit PSP’s page at https://permianpartnership.org/2023-get-out-the-vote/ which includes links where you can find out if you are registered or not and information about what your ballot might look like.
Additionally, certification of the absentee and early voting machines for the regular local election will be held at 9 a.m. Oct. 4 at the voting machine warehouse at 326 S. Canyon Street. All interested parties are invited to attend. For more information, please contact the Bureau of Elections at 885-3383.
Thank you to Eddy County’s great elections bureau for always doing a great job making certain that our local elections are fair.
Sincerely,
Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway