1. A. When voting a mailed ballot, the voter shall secretly mark the mailed ballot in the manner provided in the Election Code for marking paper ballots, place it in the official inner envelope and securely seal the envelope. The voter shall then place the official inner envelope inside the official mailing envelope and securely seal the envelope. The voter shall then complete the form on the reverse of the official mailing envelope under the privacy flap. The voter or another person authorized by law shall then return the official mailing envelope containing the voted ballot to the county clerk of the voter's county of residence. If returned by a person other than the voter, the official mailing envelope shall contain the signature, printed name and relationship to the voter of the person returning the ballot.
2. B. The official mailing envelope may be returned by mail using the United States postal service. The secretary of state shall implement a free-access tracking system for each voter to be able to see the status of the voter's mailed ballot while en route to the voter as well as when returned to the county clerk.
3. C. The official mailing envelope may be returned using a commercial delivery service; provided that unless the secretary of state has approved the use of a specific commercial delivery service, the voter shall be responsible for the costs of delivery by means of such service.
4. D. The official mailing envelope may be returned in person to the office of the county clerk or, in a statewide election, to an alternate voting location, mobile alternate voting location, election day voting location or other location where the receipt and storage of the official mailing envelope containing a voted ballot is under the supervision of an election official or county clerk's agent.

5. E. The official mailing envelope may be returned by depositing the official mailing envelope in a monitored secured container made available by the county clerk to receive an official mailing envelope containing a voted ballot for that election; provided that:

   1. (1) the location of the containers and the days and times the containers will be available to receive ballots are posted by the county clerk at least forty-two days before an election;
   2. (2) the location of a monitored secured container is considered a polling place for purposes of electioneering too close to the polling place in violation of Section 1-20-16 NMSA 1978;
   3. (3) all secured containers shall be monitored by video surveillance cameras and the video recorded by that system shall be retained by the county clerk as a record related to voting pursuant to the provisions of Section 1-12-69 NMSA 1978;

   4. (4) signage at the location of a monitored secured container shall inform voters and those dropping off ballots at the location:

      1. (a) that it is a violation of law for any person who is not an immediate family member, which includes a voter's spouse, child, parent, domestic partner, grandchild, grandparent, sibling or person with whom the voter has a continuing personal relationship, to collect and deliver a ballot for another person except as authorized by the Election Code;
      2. (b) that electioneering is prohibited within one hundred feet of the monitored secured container; and
      3. (c) of the range of dates and approximate time the ballots will be collected for that election; and
   5. (5) at least every three days and on election day after the polls close, the county clerk, deputy county clerk, election board member or messenger shall collect the ballots from the monitored secured containers and register the date and container location on each official mailing envelope.
6. F. It is a violation of Section 1-20-6 NMSA 1978 for any person to possess a key to a monitored secured container without authorization from the county clerk. It is a violation of Section 1-20-7 NMSA 1978 for any person other than the secretary of state or the county clerk to provide or operate a monitored secured container or other receptacle to receive voted ballots.

History: 1953 Comp., § 3-6-9, enacted by Laws 1969, ch. 240, § 135; 1977, ch. 269, § 7; 1979, ch. 57, § 1; 1983, ch. 232, § 3; 1987, ch. 327, § 12; 1991, ch. 105, § 12; 1993, ch. 20, § 3; 1999, ch. 267, § 12; 2003, ch. 355, § 6; 2005, ch. 270, § 47; 2008, ch. 59, § 7; 2009, ch. 251, § 10; 2015, ch. 145, § 47; 2019, ch. 212, § 70; 2023, ch. 39, § 29.

ANNOTATIONS

Cross references. — For definition of person authorized to administer oaths, see 1-1-17 NMSA 1978.

The 2023 amendment, effective June 16, 2023, revised delivery methods for returning official mailing envelopes used in returning mailed ballots, revised the definition of "immediate family member" authorized to return a mailed ballot, revised the duties of county clerks in collecting mailed ballots, and provided that it is a violation of law for any person to possess a key to a monitored secured container without authorization from the county clerk and it is a violation of law for any person other than the secretary of state or the county clerk to provide or operate a monitored secured container to receive voted ballots; in Subsection A, after "on the reverse of the official mailing envelope", deleted "which shall include a statement by the voter under penalty of perjury that the facts stated in the form are true and the voter's name, registration address and year of birth" and added "under the privacy flap"; in Subsection D, after "office of the county clerk or", added "in a statewide election", and after "election day voting location", added "or other location where the receipt and storage of the official mailing envelope containing a voted ballot is under the supervision of an election official or county clerk's agent"; in Subsection E, in the introductory clause, after "mailing envelope in a", added "monitored", after "county clerk to receive", added "an official mailing envelope containing a", and after "voted", deleted "mailed ballots" and added "ballot", in Paragraph E(1), after "at least", deleted "ninety days before a statewide election or", and after "before", deleted "a special", in Paragraphs E(2) and E(4), after "location of a" added "monitored", in Paragraph E(4), Subparagraph E(4)(a), after "immediate family member", added "which includes a voter's spouse, child, parent, domestic partner, grandchild, grandparent, sibling or person with whom the voter has a continuing personal relationship", and after "for another person", added "except as authorized by the Election Code", in Subparagraph E(4)(b), added "monitored" preceding "secured container", and in Subparagraph E(4)(c), after "of the", added "range of", and after "collected", added "for that election", in Paragraph E(5), after "at least", deleted "once a day" and added "every three days and on election day after the polls close", after "the county clerk", deleted "or a full-time", after "deputy county clerk", added "election board member or messenger", added "monitored" preceding "secured containers", after "register the date", deleted "and time stamp" and added "and container location", after "each official mailing envelope", deleted "and identify the location of the secured container in the ballot register"; and added new Subsection F.

The 2019 amendment, effective April 3, 2019, revised the procedures related to mailed ballots; in the section heading, after the section number, added "Mailed ballots", and deleted "alternate"; deleted "Except as provided in Section 1-6-5 or Section 1-6-5.7 NMSA 1978, a person voting pursuant to the Absent Voter Act"; added new subsection designation "A."; in Subsection A, added "When voting a mailed ballot, the voter", and after "address and year of birth.", deleted "Voters shall either deliver or mail the official mailing envelope to the county clerk of their county of residence" and added the remainder of the subsection; and added Subsections B through E.

The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, removed procedures for absentee voting by federal qualified electors and overseas voters; deleted the subsection designation from Subsection A, after "Except as provided in", deleted "Subsection B of this", and after "Section", added "1-6-5"; and deleted Subsections B and C, relating to absentee voting procedures by federal qualified electors and overseas voters.

The 2009 amendment, effective June 19, 2009, in Subsection A, at the beginning of the first sentence, added "Except as provided in Subsection B of this section or Section 1-6-5.7 NMSA 1978" and added the last sentence; in Subsection B, after "mailing envelope or" added "in accordance with Subsection C of this section" and deleted the former last sentence that provided for delivery or mailing of the official mailing envelope; and added Subsection C.

The 2008 amendment, effective May 14, 2008, in Subsection A, deleted "unique identifier" and added "registration address".

The 2005 amendment, effective July 1, 2005, in Subsection A, provided that the form on the mailing envelope shall include the voter's name, year of birth and unique identifier.

The 2003 amendment, effective June 20, 2003, in the first sentence of Subsection B, inserted "and overseas voters" following "Federal qualified electors" and "or electronically transmit the absentee ballot" following "mailing envelope".

The 1999 amendment, effective June 18, 1999, made stylistic changes in Subsection A.

The 1993 amendment, effective June 18, 1993, substituted the language beginning "which shall include" for "and have his signature witnessed by another registered voter or subscribed and sworn to before a person authorized to administer an oath" at the end of the last sentence in Subsection A.

The 1991 amendment, effective April 2, 1991, in Subsection A, substituted "The voter" for "He" at the beginning of the second sentence and rewrote the third sentence which read "The person voting shall then fill in the form on the reverse of the official mailing envelope and subscribe and swear to it before a person authorized to administer oaths".

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 26 Am. Jur. 2d Elections § 361.

29 C.J.S. Elections § 210(7).