New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 1, Judicial Appeal Process Provided by Law Amendment (2018)

Elections in New Mexico, 2018

• General election: Nov. 6
• Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9
• Early voting: Oct. 20 - Nov. 3
• Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6

• Online registration: Yes
• Same-day registration: No
• Voter ID: No
• Poll times: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

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On the ballot: U.S. Senate • U.S. House • Governor • Attorney General • Secretary of State • State executive offices • State House • Supreme court • Appellate courts • Local judges • State ballot measures • Municipal • Democratic primaries • Republican primaries

New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 1
Election date November 6, 2018
Topic State judiciary
Status a Approved
Type Constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature
List of New Mexico measuresNew Mexico Constitutional Amendment 1New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 2New Mexico Bond Question ANew Mexico Bond Question BNew Mexico Bond Question CNew Mexico Bond Question DSenden

New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 1, the Judicial Appeal Process Provided by Law Amendment, was on the ballot in New Mexico as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018. The measure was approved.

A "yes" vote supported this amendment to empower the legislature to pass laws (1) setting the appeals process from probate courts and other inferior courts to higher courts and (2) determining which cases originating in inferior courts and tribunals fall under the appellate jurisdiction of district courts.

A "no" vote opposed this amendment, meaning district courts would continue to have appellate jurisdiction over all cases originating in and appealed from inferior courts.

Election results

New Mexico Amendment 1
Result		Votes	Prozentualer Anteil
Yes		337,966	58.16%
No		243,100	41.84%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Übersicht

Measure design

As of 2018, Article VI of the New Mexico Constitution required that (1) legal appeals originating in probate courts, municipal courts, magistrate courts, and the Bernalillo Metropolitan Court go to the New Mexico District Courts and (2) districts courts hear all cases that originated in and were appealed from the inferior courts and tribunals. The New Mexico Legislature could not have changes this appeals process without the approval of Amendment 1.

Amendment 1 allowed the legislature to pass bills, which require the governor's signature, setting the appeals process from the inferior courts to higher courts and determine what courts and types of cases the district courts would have appellate jurisdiction over. For example, Amendment 1 allowed the legislature to decide that cases in the Bernalillo Metropolitan Court get appealed to the Court of Appeals, rather than to a district court. As of 2018, the New Mexico Constitution allowed the legislature to set the appellate jurisdiction of the New Mexico Court of Appeals, but not the New Mexico District Courts.

In the New Mexico State Legislature

Amendment 1 received bipartisan support in the New Mexico State Legislature. Sen. Cliff R. Pirtle (R-32) was the sole legislator to vote against referring the amendment. Between 1996 and 2016, the state legislature referred to voters 52 ballot measures to change the state constitution. Voters approved 45 (84.91 percent) of the referred amendments.

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title was as follows:

"

Constitutional Amendment 1 Proposing an amendment to Article 6, Section 13 of the Constitution of New Mexico to give the legislature authority to provide for Appellate Jurisdiction by Statute.

”

Ballot summary

The ballot summary was as follows:

"

Constitutional Amendment 1 would give the legislature authority to prescribe the court that will hear an appeal of a case decided in a probate, metropolitan, magistrate or other inferior court, and it removes the default requirement that appeals of cases decided in those courts be heard de novo through a new trial in district court.

”

Constitutional changes

See also: Article VI, New Mexico Constitution

The measure amended Sections 13 and 27 of Article VI of the New Mexico Constitution. The following underlined text was added and struck-through text was deleted:

Note: Use your mouse to scroll over the below text to see the full text.

Sections 13 of Article VI The district court shall have original jurisdiction in all matters and causes not excepted in this constitution, and such jurisdiction of special cases and proceedings as may be conferred provided by law, and appellate jurisdiction of all cases originating in inferior courts and tribunals in their respective districts as provided by law, and supervisory control over the same. The district courts, or any judge thereof, shall have power to issue writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, injunction, quo warranto, certiorari, prohibition and all other writs, remedial or otherwise in the exercise of their jurisdiction; provided, that no such writs shall issue directed to judges or courts of equal or superior jurisdiction. The district courts shall also have the power of naturalization in accordance with the laws of the United States. Until otherwise provided by law, at least two terms of the district court shall be held annually in each county, at the county seat. Sections 27 of Article VI Appeals shall be allowed in all cases from the final judgments and decisions of the probate courts and other inferior courts to the district courts, and in all such appeals, trial shall be had de novo unless otherwise as provided by law.

Readability score

See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2018

Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The secretary of state wrote the ballot language for this measure. The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 18, and the FRE is 10. The word count for the ballot title is 24, and the estimated reading time is 6 seconds. The FKGL for the ballot summary is grade level 26, and the FRE is 8. The word count for the ballot summary is 54, and the estimated reading time is 14 seconds. In 2018, for the 167 statewide measures on the ballot, the average ballot title or question was written at a level appropriate for those with between 19 and 20 years of U.S. formal education (graduate school-level of education), according to the FKGL formula. Read Ballotpedia's entire 2018 ballot language readability report here.

Support

Supporters

The following legislators sponsored the amendment in the legislature:

• Sen. Peter Wirth (D-25)
• Rep. Antonio Maestas (D-16)

Arguments

The official 2018 general election voter guide, prepared by the New Mexico secretary of state, included supporting and opposing arguments. The following was the supporting argument:

"

1. May allow for a faster and less costly appeals process. Because probate courts and metropolitan courts, in part, are both courts of record, appeals of decisions of those courts could go directly to the court of appeals instead of first going to the district court for an intermediate ruling. The proposed amendment would allow the legislature to provide for direct appeals to the court of appeals from those lower courts, which could save both time and money for parties involved in appeals. 2. May reduce caseloads in district courts. The caseloads of district courts could be reduced by eliminating some appeals from inferior court cases. If legislation were enacted to direct record review appeals to appellate courts, the district courts would benefit from fewer cases. Reducing the caseloads in district courts could also benefit the public by reducing the time it takes for a case to be resolved in district court. 3. May align appellate review of court decisions to the seriousness of the offense. According to the New Mexico judicial Branch 2017 Annual Report, 56 percent of the new and reopened cases in New Mexico magistrate courts in fiscal year 2017 were for traffic violations. Under the current system, such cases may be appealed to district court, and the district court decision may then be appealed to the court of appeals and supreme court, resulting in up to three levels of review of relatively minor offenses. By contrast, cases with more serious penalties, such as felony criminal cases, are first heard in district court and may receive only two levels of appellate review. The proposed amendment would authorize the legislature to align court review with the seriousness of the offense and reduce unnecessary layers of appeal that are conducted at public expense. 4. Allows the legislature the flexibility to address evolving needs of the lower courts. Constitutional provisions pertaining to appeals from probate courts and other inferior courts were last addressed through a constitutional amendment in 1966. The current proposed amendment would allow the legislature to provide greater flexibility in accommodating evolving needs associated with the review of inferior court cases.

”

Opposition

Arguments

The official 2018 general election voter guide, prepared by the New Mexico secretary of state, included supporting and opposing arguments. The following was the opposing argument:

"

1. May increase the number of cases in the appellate courts. According to the New Mexico Judicial Branch 2017 Annual Report, the court of appeals had 826 new and reopened cases in fiscal year 2017, and the New Mexico Supreme Court had 613 new and reopened cases that same fiscal year. The addition of appeals from inferior courts to those caseloads could substantially increase appellate court caseloads. This may result in reduced time and resources devoted to cases traditionally reviewed by the appellate courts, or it might result in the need to direct additional resources to the appellate courts. 2. A new appellate process might not yield greater efficiency. An appeals process is already in place for lower court cases, and there is no guarantee that potential benefits, such as greater court efficiencies and related cost-savings, will be realized. In fact, implementation of a new and untested process may carry a significant learning curve for lawyers, judges and court staff, possibly adversely affecting the relief sought by litigants. 3. District courts might be best suited to establish a record for review. District courts have the benefits of experience and resources already available to them in establishing a record in cases appealed from inferior courts. Moreover, while district court judges must be at least 35 years old and have practiced law for at least six years, probate judges and the magistrate judges in 31 counties are not required to be licensed attorneys or trained in the law. Thus, a case appealed from one of these courts may benefit from a de novo trail in a district court, in which a district court judge with more experience and training in the rules of evidence and civil procedure may preside.

”

Campaign finance

Total campaign contributions:
Support:	$0.00
Opposition:	$0.00

See also: Campaign finance requirements for New Mexico ballot measures

There were no ballot measure committees registered in support of the measure or in opposition to the measure.

Background

System of judicial appeal in New Mexico

As of 2018, the state of New Mexico had four inferior courts:

• the New Mexico Probate Courts, which are non-jury trial courts that hear informal probate and uncontested estate cases;
• the New Mexico Municipal Courts, which are non-jury trial courts that hear cases related to municipal ordinance violations, traffic violations, and petty misdemeanors;
• the New Mexico Magistrate Court, which are jury trial courts that hear cases related to tort, landlord-tenant rights, traffic violations, and preliminary felony hearings; and
• the New Mexico Bernalillo Metropolitan Court, which is a jury trial court that hears cases related to tort, landlord-tenant rights, traffic violations, and preliminary felony hearings in Bernalillo County.

Prior to the approval of Amendment 1, when the parties involved in a lawsuit appeal their case from one of these four inferior courts or a tribunal to a higher court, the lawsuit, according to Sections 13 and 27 of Article VI of the New Mexico Constitution, must go to a New Mexico District Court. As of 2018, there were 13 district courts in New Mexico, covering the state's 33 counties.

Cases in the New Mexico District Court could be appealed to the New Mexico Court of Appeals and then to the state's highest court, the New Mexico Supreme Court. The state Supreme Court had original jurisdiction over certain types of cases.

When the Court of Appeals was created in 1965, the state constitution provided that the state legislature set the court's jurisdiction. Therefore, the legislature was given the power to set what courts and types of cases the Court of Appeals has appellate jurisdiction over. The constitution did not provide similar language for the district courts, meaning the state legislature could not set what courts and types of cases the district courts have appellate jurisdiction over.

The structure of New Mexico's state court system.

Referred amendments on the ballot

From 1996 through 2016, the state legislature referred 53 constitutional amendments to the ballot. Voters approved 45 and rejected eight of the referred amendments. Most of the amendments (51 of 53) were referred to the ballot for general elections during even-numbered election years. The average number of amendments appearing on an even-year ballot was between four and five. The approval rate at the ballot box was 84.9 percent during the 20-year period from 1996 through 2016. The rejection rate was 15.1 percent. One referred amendment was on the ballot in 2016.

Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments, 1996-2016
Years	Total number	Approved	Percent approved	Defeated	Percent defeated	Annual average	Annual median	Annual minimum	Annual maximum
Even years	51	43	84.31%	8	15.69%	4.64	5.00	1	9
Odd years	2	2	100.00%	0	0.00%	0.18	0.00	0	2
All years	52	45	84.91%	8	15.09%	2.41	1.50	0	9

Path to the ballot

See also: Amending the New Mexico Constitution

In New Mexico, both chambers of the New Mexico State Legislature need to approve a constitutional amendment by a simple majority during one legislative session to refer the amendment to the ballot for voter approval.

On December 15, 2016, the amendment was introduced into the legislature as Senate Joint Resolution 1 (SJR 1). The New Mexico Senate approved the measure, with 38 senators in favor and one against, on February 9, 2017. Sen. Cliff R. Pirtle (R-32) was the sole legislator to vote against referring the amendment. An additional three senators were absent or excused from the vote. The House Judiciary Committee voted to amend the ballot measure on March 14, 2017. The amended bill passed the House of Representatives, with 67 representatives in favor and three excused or absent. As SJR 1 was amended, the Senate needed to concur with the changes for the amendment to appear on the ballot. On March 17, 2017, the Senate concurred with the House amendments.

The 2017 legislative session ran from January 17, 2017, through March 18, 2017.

Vote in the New Mexico State Senate February 9, 2017
Requirement: Simple majority of all members in each chamber
Number of yes votes required: 22  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	38	1	3
Total percent	90.48%	2.38%	7.14%
Democrat	24	0	2
Republican	14	1	1

Vote in the New Mexico House of Representatives March 17, 2017
Requirement: Simple majority of all members in each chamber
Number of yes votes required: 36  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	67	0	3
Total percent	95.71%	0.00%	4.29%
Democrat	36	0	2
Republican	31	0	1

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in New Mexico

Poll times

In New Mexico, all polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Mountain Time on Election Day. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.

Registration requirements

Check your voter registration status here.

To register to vote in New Mexico, each applicant must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of New Mexico, and at least 18 years old by the time of the next election. People convicted of a felony are eligible to vote after their prison time is completed, even if they are still on probation, parole, or another form of supervised release. Individuals who have been declared mentally incapacitated may not register to vote.

Potential New Mexico voters who were not registered automatically may use the New Mexico voter registration form or national voter registration form to register. Completed registration materials may be mailed or delivered by hand to election officials. First-time applicants by mail must attach a valid form of identification to their registration materials. Registration can also be completed online.

Automatic registration

New Mexico allows automatic voter registration. Eligible voters are automatically registered to vote when they interact with a department of motor vehicles unless they opt out.

Online registration

See also: Online voter registration

New Mexico has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.

Same-day registration

New Mexico allows same-day voter registration.

Residency requirements

In New Mexico, individuals can register to vote as soon as they become residents of the state.

Verification of citizenship

See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States

New Mexico does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration.

Verifying your registration

The New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website.

Voter ID requirements

New Mexico does not require voters to present identification while voting, in most cases. However, if an individual registered to vote for the first time by mail and did not provide verification of his or her identity then, the voter will have to show identification.

Those voters can present the following forms of identification:

• Current and valid photo identification
• Current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck, student identification card, or other government document, including identification issued by an Indian nation, tribe, or pueblo that shows the voter’s name and current address

Some municipalities require identification when voting in local elections. Click here for more information.

State profile

Demographic data for New Mexico
	New Mexico	U.S.
Total population:	2,080,328	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	121,298	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	73.2%	73.6%
Black/African American:	2.1%	12.6%
Asian:	1.4%	5.1%
Native American:	9.1%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.1%	0.2%
Two or more:	3.3%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	47.4%	17.1%
Bildung
High school graduation rate:	84.2%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	26.3%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$44,963	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	24.7%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in New Mexico. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in New Mexico

New Mexico voted for the Democratic candidate in five out of the six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, three are located in New Mexico, accounting for 1.46 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. New Mexico had three Retained Pivot Counties, 1.66 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More New Mexico coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in New Mexico
• United States congressional delegations from New Mexico
• Public policy in New Mexico
• Endorsers in New Mexico
• New Mexico fact checks
• More...

See also

2018 measures

• 2018 ballot measures
• State judiciary on the ballot
• 2018 legislative sessions

New Mexico

• New Mexico ballot measures
• New Mexico ballot measure laws
• Courts in New Mexico

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• Senate Joint Resolution 1

Recent news

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New Mexico Constitutional Amendment 1, Judicial Appeal Process Provided by Law Amendment (2018) - Google News