The New Mexico primary elections are just around the corner on June 2nd. But potential candidates who are running for office had to turn in their nominating petition signatures by March 10th; this is known as “Filing Day.” KUNM spoke with Democratic Representative Michelle Paulene Abeyta who is Diné and also represents District 69 about how this works.
MICHELLE PAULENE ABEYTA: So “Filing Day” is the day where candidates who are running for office take their petitions, if they had to get signed petitions, or their filing fees, and they head down to the County Clerk's office and they file their candidacy for office. And so that took place on March 10th. I was down at the Bernalillo County Clerk's Office, filing my 18 pages of signatures from my constituents who were supporting me to get back on the ballot, along with other documentation, and we successfully filed, along with a number of other House candidates from Bernalillo County and other positions as well.
KUNM: What are some of the requirements for a candidate, like the required number of signatures? Are they different from the Senate to the House or a political affiliation?
ABEYTA: Yes. So every position has their own set of signatures that are required. And so for my district, I believe it was 49 signatures were required, but we turned in well over that amount of signatures. Other districts could be as many as over 100 it really just depends on the size of the district and the demographic.
KUNM: Why was it important for you to keep your followers aware through a post about it on social media?
ABEYTA: I want to make sure that my constituents are aware of every step in this process and how when you jump into a position like this, you do it with lots of thought and planning. You make sure that you are an eligible candidate, you make sure that you are representing the district. You say you're representing. And also it's important for our younger generation to see what leadership is doing, how they have to be responsible and accountable, that way when they're ready to run for positions of state office or tribal office, federal office, they are aware that there is a process, and so they are watching me on social media in real time, going through this process and seeing what it takes, but also seeing that it's possible and that we belong in these spaces.
KUNM: What goes into getting all these signatures before the due date?
ABEYTA: Talking with your constituents, telling them about your interest to get back on the ballot, your reasons why, and if they're in agreement, they'll sign your ballot. they have to be the same party as you, and they have to be a registered voter, and they have to live in your district.
Another way that we also collect signatures is electronically, which is a really cool part of the New Mexico Secretary of State's online system, which makes it a lot more helpful for constituents in my district, because it's so rural, it's over 3 million acres big, and so when we have an electronic signature option available, we're able to reach more constituents through texting, through social media, through different means of communication that we would not have been able to do with just the paper ballot signatures.
KUNM: I'm interested to know how filing day was like, before you were elected?
ABEYTA: It was challenging in the sense that I had to talk to more people, to let them know who I was, to let them know why I wanted to do this, because I was facing a 10-year incumbent who had established himself, and I was coming in as a younger candidate, first time in state office, but I felt that my experiences, I felt that my accomplishments – helping build a new school in my community, helping advocate for other resources and opportunities – were what I could stand on to prove that I could do this job.
KUNM: Do you feel that New Mexicans should be civically educated?
ABEYTA: Yes, absolutely, I think we could do a better job on making sure that our students, especially our high school students, because they're about to graduate and register to vote, know about this process, I think they should be a part of it. I take my kids with me to vote. So does my husband. My grandmother took me to vote with her, so I watched her do this, and it became the norm. So I think we could do a lot better in educating our community members as well as our students about civics, and I think one way that I've been able to help do that is by bringing students and teachers to the Roundhouse, because I never had a chance to see the Roundhouse as a young person, as a student, and so I thought, when I'm elected, I am going to invite every school in my district, and bring them in. And this past year, we had over 15 schools and I love having the students there at the Roundhouse.
Support for this coverage comes from the Thornburg Foundation.
