Among the many races New Mexico voters will decide in the November 3rd election is secretary of state. The officeholder oversees and administers the state’s elections and is third in succession following the governor and lieutenant governor.
Current Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver served two consecutive terms and so was term limited. She filed to run this year for lieutenant governor, but then, after winning the June primary, she dropped out citing health reasons.
Running on the Republican ticket is Ramona Goolsby, who told KUNM she only became a Republican last year after the Republican party approached her to run for the secretary of state office. Since November 2025, Goolsby has served on the Ciudad Soil and Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors.
On the Democratic side is Amanda López Askin, who has served as Doña Ana County Clerk since September 2018, and won her June primary with 53.1% of the vote.
KUNM invited both candidates to our studios to ask them listener-submitted questions and about their respective visions for office, if elected.
*These conversations have been edited for brevity and clarity.
Ramona Goolsby
KUNM: How effective has New Mexico been at protecting the integrity of elections, and are there any additional steps that you would take to bolster election integrity?
GOOLSBY: One of the things that New Mexico does that I'm very proud of is that we have paper ballots. And I think we have clerks that are very conscientious about the elections. They do have audits. They do several other security measures. One of the things that I think we really need to focus on is voter roll maintenance. You know that if your data isn't correct, then the output isn't correct, right? So, voter roll maintenance is an extremely important function that. It needs some attention right now.
KUNM: Let’s get back to that later. For now, what is your position on voter ID?
GOOLSBY: I think that voter ID is a common-sense-type solution. When we look at the world we live in now, identity theft is probably the number one crime when you look at worldwide. You can't even go to, let's say, the pharmacy and get your medicines without having an ID. When I've called and talked to constituents, it didn't matter what party their like, “It's common sense. We all have to have them.” So, I think the problem comes down when with certain populations who may have a difficulty. I have gone to the pueblos and reservations, and their governments keep great records, and that should be acceptable. One of the questions I get quite often is about females and name changes. I have changed my name twice without any difficulty. My first husband passed away, and then I remarried. I think that women are very capable of doing that, and I would never say that a woman's not capable of changing and getting a government-issued ID. One of the people I talked with, a Democrat, said, “You know, if it would make people more confident in our elections, I'm all for it because we have to have them anyway.” So, I'm for common-sense approaches to things, and making sure that everyone who's eligible has the right to vote.
KUNM: Are you concerned that with voter ID law, that some fellow citizens—such as older voters who might let their drivers’ licenses expire—might be disenfranchised?
GOOLSBY: I don't think so because older voters must have ID to get their prescription drugs anyway, so they should be able. If someone isn't helping them get that, then then we need to step up as a society and do that. But there's also an affidavit process for voting as well.
KUNM: What, if any, concerns do you have about federal overreach, including the presence of federal officers at the polls, which could be viewed as intimidation?
GOOLSBY: I don't think anyone should be intimidated or feel intimidated going to the polls. You know, federal overreach, we're sovereign, right? We're a state, and we are in charge of our elections. And I think that when we do a good job, there shouldn't necessarily have to be anybody there. Now, if you go to the polling place, you'll see that there are observers that are from outside of the state. There are observers that are from inside of the state. So, you know having someone observe is one thing, but I don't believe in intimidation by any means.
KUNM: How would you prevent federal overreach in the case that there were, say, ICE officers, for example, who went to a certain polling location?
GOOLSBY: Well, I think they are actually supposed to identify themselves, right? And you know they are for the most part enforcing civil warrants or civil requests. So, I don't think that that's really a place for ICE officers. But people also need to remember that non-legal residents aren't supposed to be at polling places anyway. They're not supposed to be voting. They actually jeopardize their ability to come into the country legally if they do vote illegally, and we want to make sure that doesn't happen as well.
KUNM: To cleaning up voter rolls, you spoke to The Santa Fe New Mexican about 113,000 people who have moved out of New Mexico but are still in the voter rolls. The Santa Fe New Mexican reported that you wrote in to clarify your previous comments that the information about those 113,000 people “is intended as red flags for further investigation, not as a list of registrations to be removed without review.” Is that what you wrote?
GOOLSBY: That is accurate, yes.
KUNM: That list of 113,000 people comes from ELLY, a free but private service with a website, TheElectorList.com, which was privately registered in February 2025. Why is ELLY a source for red flags about New Mexico's voter rolls?
GOOLSBY: ELLY uses several platforms to compare voter rolls with nationally accredited databases such as the USPS Change of Address. They also use a proprietary change-of-address database used by companies such as Amazon, Walmart, you know, all those companies that ship packages. So sometimes that gives you a way to find an address from someone that has moved. They also have all the counties by third party. They've purchased all the property tax records. So, they know about people registered in properties and those types of things. They also have the largest database nationally of obituaries. So, they can go through and double check obituaries because, as we know, there are people that may pass away in other states that New Mexico isn't necessarily informed about through the vital statistics records. So, they use and have purchased databases that they can run that through.
KUNM: Secretaries of state played a central role in certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election and opposing the submission of unauthorized alternative slates of electors. If elected to this role in New Mexico, how will you respond to any pressure from the Trump Administration for the 2028 election?
GOOLSBY: States are sovereign. I don't want any outside pressure. I want us to New Mexicans to take care of New Mexico business, and I truly believe that. That's just like they've sued for voter rolls, and I'm like, “You know, we can clean those up ourselves.” That's what we should do. That's our obligation to New Mexico’s government, and to our voters. I'm not easily intimidated. I try to stand on my principles and morals.
Amanda López Askin
KUNM: How effective has New Mexico been at protecting the integrity of elections, and are there any additional steps that you would take to bolster election integrity?
LÓPEZ ASKIN: When I think about New Mexico elections and the rankings we have in a lot of things—whether that's child welfare, healthcare, animal abuse—we have some challenges we have to meet. Elections is not one of them. We do a stellar job in New Mexico. This is not something that is my opinion. It is very clear that we do. We have so many checks and balances in our current system, and I learned this when I became clerk. And the more I learned, the more encouraged I was basically because I was protecting something that not only was sacrosanct—the right to vote—but it was also that we do a great job. That's every single county clerk across the state. I was front and center for all the pro-voting legislation these last eight years, including the Voting Rights Act, which embedded in it has a Native American Voting Rights Act, which is something we have that we're the first on, and that's exciting. There's always going to be things to fix. But I'm proud to say that we made a lot of strides in the last eight years, and I'm looking forward to doing things like shoring up the budget, which is probably going to be our biggest challenge. So, you know, anybody who has connections to the legislature, encourage them to support a full functioning budget for the Secretary of State's office, regardless of if it's me or not, regardless of if I win. I think it's important for every single person who wants to vote and wants to believe in the system, we have to have a fully funded Secretary of State's office.
KUNM: The secretary of state's office is also responsible for maintaining records related to candidacy, business filings, and more, to ensure that they are accessible to the public. If elected, how do you plan to maintain or improve information accessibility?
LÓPEZ ASKIN: I think anybody who uses the online tools, specifically in business, is aware that there are some challenges. I think they've been working on it for years, and I believe that the next secretary of state is going to be part of the implementation of a change in how folks utilize those tools. And I think they will be pleased by the improvements. I have heard some of the challenges that people have had. I've heard them across the state. And we hear you, and we are working on it. It does cost money to do that, so again, it'll circle back to the budget. But I believe that two years is a goal to have those all improved for my fellow New Mexicans to utilize.
KUNM: How much will you continue to be in contact with the current Secretary of State?
LÓPEZ ASKIN: I'm fortunate to have a personal, close friendship that will continue beyond any elected office that she and I have. I'm fortunate to call her a friend, and you know we've been side by side for the last eight years. So, I expect that friendship to go into our elderly ages at this point. I mean, we are. Really, she's a stellar leader. She has sacrificed a lot for Bernalillo County, specifically served 10 years as a county clerk here, then 10 years as Secretary of State. The amount of fortitude, strength, perseverance that you have to have to do that is something that I hope to be able to mirror.
KUNM: What is your position on voter ID?
LÓPEZ ASKIN: I want to clear something up: We do have voter ID in New Mexico. You are not able to be a registered voter unless you have provided your ID, and we do that by looping into other vital statistics in our state, like the MVD or other governmental agencies. And so, we do confirm your identity. But if you register to vote via online, then the first time you vote, we do ask you for that ID. Subsequent to that, when you come to a voting location, you have three options to identify yourself: one is a photo ID; one is your voter registration card; the third is the one that people have the most issue with, which would be you identifying yourself with information known only to you. But there's also that magical line that you sign under a fourth-degree felony that you are who you say you are. So, let's stop saying there's no voter ID in New Mexico because that's just not true. Let's talk about how it plays out. What I know to be true is that if there is a very strict adherence to any kind of identification, the people that are marginalized already are going to lose out. Those are people, the young, the elderly, the rural. And so, what we do for the least of us is what I always want to keep in mind. And so, we have to keep those folks on the forefront. I've been one of those folks. My family has been one of those folks that felt very marginalized. So that is something I will continue to carry the message of is really batting down that misinformation.
KUNM: You touched on this already, but what, if any, concerns do you have that with a voter ID law, fellow citizens may be disenfranchised?
LÓPEZ ASKIN: It's a grave concern. I live in southern New Mexico. I go to Chaparral, La Union, Anthony, Santa Teresa—I know that there are barriers to voter ID. But I know they are eligible to vote and they should be voting. So, we do everything we can to assist and support folks that are that want to know how to vote and how to identify themselves. And I believe that the laws that we have connected to voter identification meet the disenfranchised or those who don't feel like they have what I call a ‘seat at the table of democracy.’ And so, I support the current law of voter ID in New Mexico. And I would challenge anybody who doesn't support it to show me where this has been an issue, and then we can have a discussion. But it doesn't mean we have to have these wide sweeping laws that are going to disenfranchise a certain percentage of New Mexicans. I don't think New Mexicans want that either.
KUNM: What, if any, concerns do you have about federal overreach, including the presence of federal officers at the polls, which could be viewed as intimidation.
LÓPEZ ASKIN: I am gravely concerned, and if you're not, then you're not paying attention. The good news about the current Executive Orders that have gone out about elections is that they're unconstitutional. And I have had some issue with some of the things that the Supreme Court has made decision on, specifically a woman's right to choose her own health care decisions. But I have been slightly encouraged by the brakes that have been put on these unconstitutional Executive Orders and am very relieved for the upcoming midterms that the U.S. Postal Service will not be a factor in interfering in terms of having very strict requirements for mail-in ballots.
KUNM: Secretaries of state played a central role in certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election and opposing the submission of unauthorized alternative slates of electors. If elected to this role in New Mexico, how will you respond to any pressure from the Trump Administration for the 2028 election?
LÓPEZ ASKIN: I will do what I've been doing for the last eight years: I will follow the law. I will continue to remind anybody and everybody, including the current administration, that the Constitution guarantees us that we have states' rights to run elections. They should not be interfering, and I have been fortunate to get to know a lot of the candidates across the country for secretary of state, and we're all on the same page. We have more power united. And I believe that there are more folks that are kind of in the gray area that are going to support us than you might think. Because regardless of your political bent at this point, I don't think anybody would say we're in great shape right now, and we must do something. And that would be elect different leaders to protect our democracy.
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Voting information
October 6: Early voting begins at County Clerk offices
October 17: Expanded early voting begins
October 20: Deadline to request a mail-in ballot
October 31: Last day of early voting
November 3: Election Day
Find a sample ballot, voting locations and more here.
