Today’s the day: Get out and vote
Today’s the day. No more advertisements. No more mailers. No more knocks at the door. Today, Santa Fe elects four city councilors and a new, stronger mayor. It’s finally election day. From 7 a.m. until 7 p.m., voters can visit one of 12 convenience centers around town to cast their votes in four city council races and choose among five candidates for mayor. There’s the opportunity, too, to rank choices in each race where there are more than two candidates. This is truly a historic election.
It’s the first instant runoff-style election in New Mexico and also will produce a mayor who earns a six-figure salary with additional power and responsibility to run the city. With instant runoff, voters can rank the candidates from top to bottom in all races where there are more than two candidates.
If no one gets a majority on the first round, the counting continues. The candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated, with his or her second-place votes are reallocated to the remaining candidates, and so on, until the candidate with a majority of votes emerges. We can only hope the counting of ballots goes as smoothly as the campaigning has been. Especially in the race for mayor, the candidates have been cordial and positive, stressing their accomplishments rather than tearing down other candidates.
To be honest, a tad more conflict might be welcome — not because we want negative campaigning, but because it helps voters when candidates point to differences among their rivals more forcefully. With ranked-choice voting, candidates do not want to insult other candidates, hoping to be a second or third choice of their opponents’ supporters. Especially with five candidates for mayor, it is likely that no one person will get 50 percent plus one in the first round. Second- and third-place votes will be crucial in determining the eventual winner.
That’s why citizens should take care to mark ballots clearly. It’s up to voters whether they vote only for a first choice or whether they want to rank a few, or all five, candidates. That’s an individual preference, but for anyone who wants to be part of the instant runoff, ranking is a must.
Good luck to all candidates today. Santa Fe is fortunate to have so many civic-minded, intelligent individuals willing to serve their city. While we are endorsing candidates in all the contested races, we want to emphasize what a strong field of accomplished people are participating this municipal election. Win or lose, we know they will continue to be active in the affairs of Santa Fe. Once again, here are The New Mexican’s endorsements for the 2018 city election. For mayor: Alan Webber, first; Joseph Maestas, second. City Council, District One: Signe Lindell. City Council, District Two: Carol Romero-Wirth. City Council, District Three: Roman Abeyta is unopposed. City Council, District Four: JoAnne Vigil Coppler. Today, the only opinions that matter are those of voters. Take the time to participate in the best democracy around, the one closest to home.