Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A. Within one day of receipt of a mailed
ballot, the county clerk shall remove the privacy flap to verify that the voter
signed the outer envelope and to confirm that the last four digits of the
social security number provided by the voter matches the information on the
voter's certificate of registration pursuant to Subsection B of Section
1-6-10 NMSA 1978.
(1) If either voter's signature or the last
four digits of the voter's social security number are not provided, the county
clerk shall reject the mailed ballot and make a notation of "rejected" in the
absentee ballot register and provide the applicable rejection reason, either
"no signature" or "incomplete," and shall transfer the ballot the special
deputy for mailed ballots for delivery to the absent voter election board in
accordance with Subsection F of Section
1-6-10 NMSA 1978.
(2) If the last four digits of the social
security number do not match the electronic voter registration certificate, the
following procedures shall be followed:
(a)
The county clerk shall review the original voter registration application to
ensure the mismatch is not the result of a typographical error in the voter
database. If the error is in the electronic voter registration record, the
voter record shall be corrected, and the ballot will not require a curing
process.
(b) If the issue is deemed
not to be a typographical error in the electronic voter registration record,
the county clerk shall query the driver history record system through the New
Mexico department of taxation and revenue using the name and date of birth of
the voter. If the query returns the same social security number as provided by
the voter under the privacy flap, the ballot shall be accepted.
B. The county clerk
shall immediately attempt to contact a voter whose ballot qualification was
rejected to provide notice to the voter of the rejection, opportunity to
satisfy the reason for the rejection, and the process for curing reason for the
rejection.
(1) The county clerk shall contact
the voter by phone and email, if this information is available.
(2) If contact is not made by email or phone,
the county clerk shall send a notice by regular mail with a postage pre-paid
envelope.
(3) If a voter requests
translation, the county clerk must provide translation in the voter's preferred
language.
C. Voters may
cure a rejected ballot in-person at the county clerk's office of the county
where the ballot was issued or by electronic means or by regular mail by
completing one of the following procedures:
(1) If either the voter's signature is
missing or the voter did not provide the last four digits of the voter's social
security number, the voter shall complete the required information under the
privacy flap or complete and sign an affidavit.
(2) If the last four digits of the provided
social security number do not match the electronic voter registration record
and cannot be ascertained through Subsection A of this section, the voter shall
be required to complete and sign an affidavit on a form prescribed by the
secretary of state and provided further documentation in order to affirm the
required voter identification information.
D. Pursuant to Subsection F of Section
1-6-10 NMSA 1978, if the required
information is submitted by the voter, the clerk shall update the absentee
ballot register record as "accepted" and shall transfer the ballot, affidavit,
and any other document that evidences the cured mailed ballot to the special
deputy for mailed ballots for delivery to the absent voter election board or an
election board appointed for the preparation of the county canvass. County
clerks shall conceal or redact the full social security number and full date of
birth on any provided documents prior to transferring those
materials.
E. All documents
containing personal protected information shall be kept in a secure place by
the county clerk and the absent voter election board.
