Press Releases

Stand Up America Applauds New Mexico Legislature and Community Advocates for Introduction of Sweeping Democracy Package

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
JANUARY 27, 2023

PRESS CONTACT:
Sarah Harris, [email protected]

SANTA FE—Today, Stand Up America applauded New Mexico lawmakers and voting rights advocates for the introduction of HB 4, the New Mexico Voting Rights Act, a legislative package to protect and strengthen democracy in the Land of Enchantment. The legislation, introduced by Representative Javier Martinez, Representative D. Wonda Johnson, and Senator Katy Duhigg, is similar to a bill package that narrowly fell short last session. 

The legislative package includes:

  • Restoring voting rights for New Mexicans convicted of a felony upon release from incarceration,
  • Improving protections for Tribal members by increasing collaboration between tribal leaders and election clerks, standardizing early voting on tribal lands, and guaranteeing much-needed resources for polling places and secure ballot drop boxes,
  • Establishing a permanent opt-in absentee voting list that would allow eligible voters to mark their preference for a mail ballot, and
  • Establishing Election Day as a school holiday to create generational value of voting and something that can be looked forward to as a family event. 

Stand Up America’s President and Founder, Sean Eldridge, issued the following statement on the bill introduction:

“With the introduction of the Voting Rights Act, New Mexico has an opportunity to set a national example of how to ensure that every eligible American can exercise their freedom to vote. This is, in no small part, thanks to the tireless local advocates, organizers, and legislators who have been working for  years to craft and advance this legislation.
 
“New Mexicans deserve a democracy that works for everyone, whether they are hardworking Americans who may not be able to find enough hours in the day to register, returning citizens who have been left out of the democratic process altogether, or Tribal members whose unique needs are often forgotten when it’s time to make voting policy.

“As the session continues, Stand Up America will be mobilizing our members in New Mexico to contact their lawmakers and make sure this legislative package is prioritized. We won’t stop until this critical package is law.”

Stand Up America applauds the work of the Voting Rights Act Coalition which is made up of over 40 New Mexico and national organizations. Stand Up America’s nearly 4,000 members in New Mexico will be making calls and sending emails to their lawmakers throughout the session in support of the New Mexico Voting Rights Act. Thankfully, Stand Up America’s members are not new to fighting for measures to shore up democracy at the state level. Last year, Stand Up America’s members drove more than 1,800 calls and 15,000 emails to legislators and sent over 650,000 texts in support of state-level measures that would strengthen democracy in Arizona, Michigan, New Mexico, Illinois, Oregon, New York, and beyond.

More information about Stand Up America’s campaigns to protect and strengthen democracy is available here. 

To speak with a Stand Up America representative about their work in New Mexico, please don’t hesitate to reach out to [email protected]. 

# # #

About Stand Up America
Stand Up America is a progressive advocacy organization with nearly two million community members across the country. Focused on grassroots advocacy to stand up to corruption and voter suppression and build a more representative democracy, Stand Up America has driven over 1.7 million calls to lawmakers, registered over 100,000 voters, mobilized thousands of protestors, and contacted tens of millions of voters.

Website: StandUpAmerica.com
Twitter: @StandUpAmerica
Instagram: @StandUp_America
Facebook: @StandUpAmerica