More than 711,000 New Mexicans voted on Election Day

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Hundreds of thousands of New Mexicans voted in the midterm election, and there were few if any issues reported on Election Day. 

KOB 4 spoke with the secretary of state about the turnout and how things went yesterday. 

“It looks like we had a few more voters come out to the polls in 2022 than we did in 2018,” said New Mexico Secretary of State, Maggie Toulouse Oliver.

The Secretary of State’s Office reports more than 711,000 New Mexicans voted in yesterday’s election. We’re told in 2018 that number was closer to 700,000.

In all, the Secretary of State’s Office says around 52% of currently registered voters cast a ballot. 

“I have to say though, this is very healthy. It’s a healthy turnout for a midterm election year,” said Toulouse Oliver. 

There were few reports of backups at the polls. In Sandoval County, some long lines were reported, but any issues were resolved by the time KOB got there.

Toulouse Oliver says any backup at the polls was likely due to thousands of New Mexicans registering and voting on the same day. 

“Because we had 10,000 people– over 10,000 people register and vote on Election Day which is more just in of itself than we’ve had in the previous few elections where we had same day registration,” Toulouse Oliver said. 

Despite the increase in New Mexicans voting —  the secretary says the election was smooth. 

“We did not have a single voter in the state that was not able to get their vote case if they needed to,” said Toulouse Oliver. 

She says there were no reported issues with election security. 

“It’s an imperfect process, there’s so many humans involved, so many systems involved you’re always going to see a glitch here or there,” Toulouse Oliver said. “But you know again, nothing that deserves an investigation per se, or anything that we’re deeply concerned about.”

Toulouse Oliver says they will work with county clerks to address some minor tweaks, but ultimately she’s happy New Mexicans turned out in force to vote.

“The more participation we have, the more our democracy can thrive, and I’m just proud to be a part of that work and help facilitate that for our voters here in the state,” said Toulouse Oliver.