Become an informed voter

Many voters think that the national elections are those that hold the most importance. We are inundated for months with high-priced ads and national debates between candidates for nationally-elected offices. They pander to each of us, seemingly personally, making individual promises to each of us, without the means of actually understanding or correcting our individual needs as a household.

But local elected leaders absolutely have the means and opportunity to affect our daily lives. Our local elections are the ones we should all be paying attention to. Water rights, school resources, homelessness, crime, local economic development, taxes, weed ordinances and healthcare are all things that local leaders can choose to address themselves or lobby for their constituents at a higher level. And these are all things that affect each of us daily. And the local level is where each of us can have the greatest impact as a constituent. Interacting with your elected leaders carries the most weight at the local level because they are our neighbors. Rather than discussing nebulous concepts that they may not fully understand, your local politicians are living through the same storms that you are, if perhaps in different boats.

So it is imperative that we vote in local elections. But local elections see very little voter turn-out in Las Cruces and Doña Ana County. Of registered voters, turn-out is usually in the single digit percentages. City Council seats are won by a couple hundred votes. For some reason, voter apathy is alive and well in southern New Mexico.

Knowledge is power. Perhaps some folks don’t feel informed enough to vote, and I would say that voting blind, or by name recognition alone, is not a great strategy to use your voice to affect meaningful change in your city or county. To combat disinformation and get to know your pool of available candidates for a number of local and state offices, Businesses for a Safer Las Cruces, is hosting a candidate forum on September 22, 2025, at 6 p.m. at the Farm and Ranch Museum, 4100 Dripping Springs Road. This is an opportunity for all candidates for local office, regardless of party affiliation, to make a quick presentation about their platform and then take questions from the audience about their policy stance and how it intersects with local issues. The forum is open to the public and I encourage everyone to attend and get informed! I’ll be there, and would love for you to say “Hi!”

Now, perhaps you feel your vote doesn’t matter for whatever reason, or that the results don’t affect you, or that you aren’t worthy of, not just an opinion, but active participation in your local government. But you would be, respectfully, very wrong. Your voice matters and your elected officials are required to represent you and the issues you want addressed.

Voting has become quite easy in our modern society. Early voting usually includes very short lines, especially if you go during regular business hours on a weekday. And you no longer have to vote in a strict precinct – you can visit any voting center in the county.

Ranked choice is a new concept for some people in City of Las Cruces elections, but it is simply listing your favorite candidates in order, and folks at the voting center will answer any questions you may have. The results are counted and any run-off elections occur in real-time based on the voters’ rankings.

To see available early voting centers and other relevant voter information, visit https://www.donaanacountyelections.com/

To verify your registration or register to vote, or to download a sample ballot (highly recommend!), visit https://voterportal.servis.sos.state.nm.us/WhereToVote.aspx