[NFB-NM] FW: Let's Vote! Make sure you're registered

Thu Sep 12 15:21:40 UTC 2024

I encourage everyone to register to vote, then vote in the upcoming
election. You can also visit www.nfb.org/vote <http://www.nfb.org/vote>  for
blindness-specific  resources.

Tara

Tara Chavez, President

National Federation of the Blind of New Mexico

NFBNM.President at gmail.com <mailto:NFBNM.President at gmail.com> 

(505) 328-3349

Live the life you want.

www.nfbnm.org <http://www.nfbnm.org/> 

The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation's blind. Every day we work
together to help blind people live the lives they want.

www.nfb.org <http://www.nfb.org/> 

From: Ellen Pinnes <epinnes at msn.com> 
Sent: Wednesday, September 11, 2024 3:45 PM
To: Ellen Pinnes <epinnes at msn.com>
Subject: Let's Vote! Make sure you're registered

This message is from Ellen Pinnes and The Disability Coalition.   

Election Day 2024 is Tuesday, November 5, so it's time to get started on our
Election Year "Let's Vote!" series.  This is the first in that series and
covers registering to vote.  Future emails will review other aspects of
voting, so keep an eye out for them.

Here at The Disability Coalition, we encourage members of the disability
community to make their voices heard in policy-making, and voting to select
the people who make those policies is a key way to do that.  And the first
step in voting is to make sure you're registered!  If you're not sure
whether you're registered to vote in New Mexico, you can find out by going
to the My Registration Information link on the Secretary of State's website:
https://voterportal.servis.sos.state.nm.us/WhereToVote.aspx.

Having a disability, regardless of the type of disability, doesn't prevent
you from registering and voting - you're barred from voting only if a court
order clearly takes that right away from you.  Unfortunately, people with
disabilities are much less likely to vote than other groups are.  That means
that the disability community is missing an important way to influence the
policies that affect all of our lives.  We want to turn that around, which
means that if you're not registered to vote, you should be! 

Once you're registered, you can vote in national, state, county and city
elections in New Mexico.  In order to register to vote, you need to be 1) a
citizen of the United States, 2) a resident of New Mexico, and 3) at least
18 years old on Election Day.  There's no minimum residency requirement, so
you can register even if you just moved here.  And if you're 17 now but will
turn 18 by Election Day, you can go ahead and register now.  If you've been
convicted of a felony, you can't vote while you're incarcerated, but you can
register and vote once you're released.

You can register to vote without going in person to the County Clerk's
office or a polling location up to 28 days before the election, which this
year is October 8.  There are lots of ways to register, which makes it easy.

*	You can register online through the New Mexico Secretary of State's
Online Voter Registration System:
https://portal.sos.state.nm.us/OVR/WebPages/InstructionsStep1.aspx
*	You can mail your registration to the Secretary of State's office.
To get the registration form, go to the link in the preceding bullet and
download the form; or call the Secretary of State's office at 1-800-477-3632
and ask them to mail it to you; or contact the County Clerk in your county
to request one.  Contact information for all the County Clerks is available
on the Secretary of State's website at
https://www.sos.nm.gov/voting-and-elections/voter-information-portal-nmvote-
org/County-Clerk-Information/.
*	You can register through an authorized individual or organization
that assists with registrations and has qualified as a Third-Party
Registration Agent through the Secretary of State's office.  (If you're not
sure whether the person assisting you is a qualified Registration Agent, ask
to see their notarized Voter Registration Agent Identification Form.)
*	You can register in person at the County Clerk's office in the
county where you live and at Motor Vehicle Division offices and other state
offices like Human Services Department (Health Care Authority) field
offices. 

We recommend that you register by October 8 to make sure you can vote
without difficulty and that you have the option to use a mail-in ballot
rather than going to vote in person.  But if you miss the October 8
deadline, you can still register!  New Mexico now has same-day voter
registration (SDR), which allows you to register on the day you vote, during
early voting and on Election Day.  Same-day registration is available at the
County Clerk's office in your county and may also be available at other
polling locations during early voting if the Clerk has designated an
employee there to take them.  If you plan to register when you go to vote,
you should call your County Clerk's office and/or check their website for
information on where same-day registrations will be accepted.  (See the
second bullet above for the link to a website where you can get contact
information for all the county clerks' offices.)   On Election Day, SDR will
be available at all polling locations.  

When you register in person, you'll be asked to provide 1) a photo ID, or 2)
a document showing your name and address, which can be a utility bill, bank
statement, government check, paycheck, student ID, tribal ID, or other
government document.  If you register by mail, you can send a copy along
with the registration form.  If you don't submit one of these documents at
the time you register, you'll be asked to show it the first time you vote.

The documents required for same-day registration are a little different.
You have to show one of the following:  1) a New Mexico driver's license or
ID card issued by the Motor Vehicle Division, 2) any document showing your
address in the county, plus a photo ID card, OR 3) an ID card from a New
Mexico post-secondary educational institution, plus a current fee statement
showing the student's address in the county.

Once you've registered, your county clerk will mail you a confirmation that
includes a voter ID card.  To check the status of your registration at any
time (whether it's a new one or you registered a while ago), use the My
Registration Information link:
https://voterportal.servis.sos.state.nm.us/WhereToVote.aspx.

When you register, you can choose to identify as a member of a political
party.  New Mexico currently has three "major" parties (Democratic,
Republican, and Libertarian) and one "minor" party (Green) that you can
register with.  If you prefer not to name a particular party, you can
register as "No Party" (also called "Decline to State").  Only members of a
party can vote in primary elections to select candidates for that party, but
EVERYONE who is registered can vote in general elections like the one on
November 5, whether or not they select a party.

You can find lots of information on voter registration and voting in general
at the Secretary of State's website:  www.sos.nm.gov <http://www.sos.nm.gov>
.  And if you have any difficulty in registering, contact Disability Rights
New Mexico (505-256-3100 in Albuquerque, 1-800-432-4682 toll-free statewide,
or by email to info at drnm.org <mailto:info at drnm.org> ) and they can help you
resolve the problem.

So make sure you're registered to vote, and help make the voice of the
disability community heard on Election Day!

* * * * * * *

  The Disability Coalition is funded in part by the   

New Mexico Developmental Disabilities Council  

through Federal Program funding.  

Additional funding is provided by  

The Arc of New Mexico, Disability Rights New Mexico,  

the Independent Living Resource Center, and New Vistas.  

If you prefer not to receive emails from The Disability Coalition,  

please send a message to EPinnes at msn.com <mailto:EPinnes at msn.com> 

with "unsubscribe" in the subject line. 

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