2026 Midterms State GuideNew Mexico
Hold on to your green chiles and hot air balloons.
Polls are closed
Polls are closed in New Mexico, and results aren’t finalized yet.
Ballots are still being counted, close races can take days to call, and no result is official until it’s certified.
A prayer for New Mexico
Creator of rugged mountains and breathtaking desert, the life and breath of every creature in the Land of Enchantment is in Your hands. As voters approach the polls, may they not be overwhelmed by their ballots’ length or complexity. Give them wisdom to weigh each measure carefully, discernment in their choice, and the grace to trust You with the outcomes.
Read the whole prayerUpdated
Hi! It’s me, Shadrach. Apparently, I’m your civic guide today. If you’ve been complaining about how things are going (and I’ve heard you... the walls are thin), this guide will help you feel informed and able to vote in this year’s midterms. Now, hold on to your green chiles and hot air balloons, and let’s get into it.
New Mexico at a glance
New Mexico votes on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, for governor, U.S. Senate, all 3 U.S. House seats and seven statewide ballot measures.
- Election Day
- Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026
- Voter registration
- Oct. 6: Voter registration deadline for mail/online registration. Early voting begins at county clerk offices (can register in person there). Mailed ballots start going out.
- Early voting
- Oct. 17: Early voting expands to alternate sites in many counties.
- Governor
- 2 candidates
- U.S. Senate
- 2 candidates
- U.S. House
- 3 seats
- Statewide ballot measures
- 7
What happens next
The counting continues
Election-night numbers are unofficial. Mail, provisional, and military ballots are still being counted, so close races can take days to call.
Officials double-check the count
Local election officials review the ballots and the tallies (the canvass). A very close race can go to a recount.
New Mexico certifies the results
Results become official once New Mexico certifies them, usually a few weeks after Election Day.
Winners take office
The new Congress takes office in early January. Governors and other state officials take office on dates set by state law, most of them in January too.
Important dates
- Jun. 2Primaries This date has passed.
- Oct. 6Voter registration deadline for mail/online registration. Early voting begins at county clerk offices (can register in person there). Mailed ballots start going out. This date has passed.
- Oct. 17Early voting expands to alternate sites in many counties. This date has passed.
- Oct. 20Last day for your county clerks to receive mailed ballot applications. This date has passed.
- Oct. 31Early voting ends. This date has passed.
- Nov. 3Election Day, polls open 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Same-day registration is available. Absentee ballots due by 7 p.m. This date has passed.
What’s at stake
If you’re looking for close races, you’re not likely to find them in the Land of Enchantment. Every race is ranked safely blue with the exception of one House district (NM-2), which still leans Democratic, making the deep blue state a sure thing for Dems and a long shot for Republicans. In a 2026 Emerson College poll, voters ranked both healthcare and the economy as the most important issues New Mexico is facing at 23%. 17% ranked crime as most important, followed by education (12%), housing affordability (9%), threats to democracy (7%), and immigration (5%).
Who’s on your ballot
Tap a race to see the candidates.
New Mexico is choosing a governor
See whose priorities line up with yours
Here are the top priorities each candidate lists, in their own words. Pick the 2 that matter most to you. Names stay hidden until you see your results.
0 of 2 picked
- Top priorities
Deb HaalandDemocrat- Improving public education with early literacy programs and hands-on career experience
- Raising the minimum wage and child tax credit and cracking down on price gouging
- Equipping law enforcement against violent crime and drug trafficking and expanding addiction recovery
- Top priorities
Gregg HullRepublican- Strengthening rural health care and reforming medical malpractice laws to lower costs
- Increasing police presence and adopting zero tolerance for violent crimes and crimes against children
- Attracting high-paying jobs with targeted incentives and expanding oil and gas production
- Get to know ’em
Larry E. MarkerRepublican
All U.S. House of Representatives seats are up for election every two years. Find your district here.
- Shadrach’s big picture
New Mexicans will elect three candidates to represent them in the U.S. House. Democrats are expected to hold all three of those seats.
- Open seats
None
- Competitive districts
NM-2 is considered slightly competitive (leaning but not solidly Democratic). NM-1 and NM-3 are ranked solidly Democratic. Candidates in both parties filed to run in all districts, so no district is guaranteed to either party.
Statewide ballot measures
7 to read before you go. Tap one to open it.
Right now, if a governor doesn’t do anything about a bill (like sign it or veto it), it just… dies. That’s called a pocket veto. The constitutional amendment would change that: instead of dying, the bill automatically becomes law if the governor neither signs nor vetoes it within three days during the legislative session or within 20 days for bills presented during the last three days of the legislative session.
Voting yessupports ending the pocket veto, so a bill the governor neither signs nor vetoes becomes law automatically (after three days during the session, or 20 days for bills sent in its last three days)Voting noopposes this constitutional amendment, maintaining the current process in which governors have a “pocket veto,” meaning the governor effectively vetoes a bill by not signing within the required timeframe.Right now, school elections have to happen in a different year from partisan (like federal or statewide) elections. This amendment would repeal that constitutional requirement, allowing them to be held on the same dates as partisan elections.
Voting yessupports letting school elections be held on the same dates as partisan elections (like federal or statewide races), instead of in a separate yearVoting noopposes this constitutional amendment, keeping the requirement that school elections be held in a different year from partisan electionsRight now, the governor can appoint whoever they want to run New Mexico's public university boards, as long as the board stays roughly balanced between parties. This amendment would establish a committee to vet candidates and make a list the governor can choose from.
Voting yessupports creating a committee that vets candidates for New Mexico’s public university boards and gives the governor a list to choose fromVoting noopposes this constitutional amendment, allowing the governor to continue choosing whoever they want to run NM’s public university boardsThis amendment would establish a salary for members of the New Mexico State Legislature. The salary would be based on the state's median household income, and it would increase or decrease automatically based on the median household income in the state. New Mexico is currently the only state that doesn’t pay its legislators.
Voting yessupports paying New Mexico state legislators a salary tied to the state’s median household income, rising or falling automatically as that income changesVoting noopposes this constitutional amendment, maintaining that New Mexico state legislators do not receive a salaryThis measure would allow the state to borrow $30 million in general obligation bonds to fund construction, equipping, and improvement of senior citizen centers in the state.
Voting yessupports letting the state borrow $30 million through bonds to build, equip, and improve senior citizen centersVoting noopposes this borrowing, so the state does not issue the $30 million in bonds for senior centersThis measure would allow the state to borrow $20 million in general obligation bonds to fund the acquisition of library resources in the state.
Voting yessupports letting the state borrow $20 million through bonds to buy resources for libraries across the stateVoting noopposes this borrowing, so the state does not issue the $20 million in bonds for library resourcesThis measure would allow the state to borrow $230 million in general obligation bonds to fund capital improvements and acquisitions for higher education institutions, special schools, and tribal schools statewide. The funding would be used for construction, renovation, and purchasing equipment.
Voting yessupports letting the state borrow $230 million through bonds for construction, renovation, and equipment at colleges and universities, special schools, and tribal schoolsVoting noopposes this borrowing, so the state does not issue the $230 million in bonds for these schools
Also on the ballot
Other races New Mexico voters will decide.
- Lieutenant Governor
- Attorney General
- Secretary of State
- Auditor
- Commissioner of Public Lands
- Treasurer
- Public Education Commission (5 seats)
- State House
- Special state legislative
- State Supreme Courts
- Intermediate appellate courts
- Municipal government
Whose job is it?
Ten things government does. Tap the office that does each one.
Whose job is it to…
1 of 10
Declare a state of emergency after a hurricane or flood?
Pass it on
Know someone voting in New Mexico?
Send them the guide. It takes one tap, and it saves them an evening of arguing in a group chat.
From the newsroom
How TPO has covered New Mexico this cycle. Tap one to read it here.
A prayer for New Mexico
Creator of rugged mountains and breathtaking desert, the life and breath of every creature in the Land of Enchantment is in Your hands. As voters approach the polls, may they not be overwhelmed by their ballots’ length or complexity. Give them wisdom to weigh each measure carefully, discernment in their choice, and the grace to trust You with the outcomes.
May candidates run with integrity and not with contempt for those who oppose them. Surround the winners with wise counsel and guide them toward decisions that serve their constituents. Comfort those who lose, and give them grace in their words and deeds.
Draw near to all New Mexicans tempted toward anxiety, anger, or despair. Guard their hearts with a peace that this political moment cannot give. Open doors for believers to share the good news that no candidate or ballot decision usurps Your sovereignty or thwarts Your good purposes.
Amen.