From today’s Albuquerque Journal:
Legislation making it a crime to intimidate election workers and expanding automatic voter registration is on its way to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham after winning House approval Monday.
The proposals — contained in separate bills — emerged this year as priorities for Democratic legislative leaders.
Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver said the measures would increase protection for people on the front lines carrying out elections and make it easier for New Mexicans to vote.
“As federal voting bills are stymied in Congress and voting rights come under attack across the nation, states like New Mexico must step up to protect these rights,” said Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat.
The automatic voter registration proposal, House Bill 4, includes provisions to establish a Native American Voting Rights Act, outlining requirements for secure ballot drop boxes and restores felons’ rights to vote when they leave incarceration, rather than after the completion of probation or parole.
Read the complete story here.