Auditor to review candidates’ spending
Secretary of State says move may infringe on her authority
SANTA FE — State Auditor Wayne Johnson said Friday he plans to review the spending of the 12 New Mexico candidates who qualified for public campaign financing during this year’s election cycle.
In a letter sent to Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver, Johnson expressed concern over potential violations of the state’s campaign laws, citing a random audit of 2016 political spending reports conducted by the secretary of state that turned up questionable expenditures by several candidates and political committees.
That audit did not include any publicly financed candidates, Johnson said.
“It’s fair to ensure that candidates who choose to run a
political campaign on taxpayer dollars are following all appropriate laws and rules in their campaign expenditures,” the auditor said in a statement.
However, it’s typically the secretary of state’s job to enforce New Mexico campaign spending rules and laws, and a Secretary of State’s Office spokesman responded coolly to the proposed audit.
“Having just received notice of the state auditor’s intent, the secretary does have some concern regarding the scope of his efforts, and that the auditor may be overstepping his authorities while infringing on the office’s authority to oversee New Mexico elections,” spokesman Joey Keefe said.
He also said Toulouse Oliver supports transparency and accountability in state elections, and would formally respond to Johnson’s letter in the coming days.
Under New Mexico law, only statewide judicial candidates — those running for Supreme Court or Court of Appeals — and Public Regulation Commission candidates are eligible to receive public financing.
In this year’s election cycle, seven of the 12 candidates who qualified for public campaign funds are Republicans and five are Democrats. Eight of the candidates are running for four different Court of Appeals posts, while the remaining four are running for two different PRC seats.
The dollar amount each candidate receives varies by office and political party. In all, the 12 candidates are slated to get $346,924 for this year’s primary election cycle and more than $1.6 million combined for the general election.
Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat who was elected secretary of state in 2016, has described herself as a supporter of public financing.
“Public financing gives voters confidence that candidates for these important offices will not be swayed by large corporate donations and special interest money,” Toulouse Oliver said last month in announcing which candidates had qualified for public campaign funds.
Johnson, a Republican, was appointed state auditor by Gov. Susana Martinez in December and is running this year for election to a new four-year term. He filled a vacancy created by the resignation of former Auditor Tim Keller, who stepped down after being elected Albuquerque’s mayor.