Secretary of State of New Mexico

Last updated
Secretary of State of New Mexico
Seal of New Mexico.svg
Maggie Toulouse Oliver.jpg
since December 9, 2016
Term length Four years
Formation1912;112 years ago (1912)
First holderAntonio J. Lucero
Website Secretary of State of New Mexico

The secretary of state of New Mexico is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of government of the U.S. state of New Mexico. Twenty-six individuals have held the office of secretary of state since statehood. Since 1923, every elected New Mexican secretary of state has been a woman. The incumbent is Maggie Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat. [1] Toulouse Oliver's election was forced early due to the resignation of former secretary of state Dianna Duran in October 2015, after criminal charges were filed by the Attorney General's Office alleging Duran converted campaign funds to personal gambling debt. [2]

Contents

Powers and duties

The secretary of state is in effect the guarantor of the continuity and stability of good government in New Mexico, with his or her role extending to the enforcement of elections and government ethics laws, the certification, filing, and preservation of legislation, gubernatorial acts, and other instruments vital to the efficient operation of state government, and the registration and regulatory oversight of commerce and industry.

Elections administration

The Bureau of Elections of the Office of the Secretary of State administers elections and enforces local, state, and federal election laws. The bureau's duties include training county clerks and voting machine technicians, maintaining the state's voter registration database, filing petitions of candidacy for candidates for public office, and administering the Native American Election Information Program, which is a special program to help improve voter registration and voter turnout among the Native American populations within the state. [3]

Campaign finance and lobbying regulation

The Ethics Division of the Office of the Secretary of State regulates campaign finance and lobbying within the state, and provides campaign finance and lobbying compliance training to various parties involved in government.

Commerce and industry

The Business Services Division of the Office of the Secretary of State provides various administrative and business-related services to the people of New Mexico. This includes the formation of corporations, limited liability companies, general partnerships, limited partnerships, and limited liability partnerships, the registration of trademarks, and the indexing of security interests under the Uniform Commercial Code and the Food Security Act of 1985. [4] [5] [6] The division is also responsible for licensing notaries public, issuing apostilles, and maintaining the office's computer systems, including the voter registration system managed by the Bureau of Elections. [7] [8]

Miscellaneous functions

The secretary of state is responsible for filing slip laws, preserving legislative journals, and publishing state agency administrative rules. The secretary also maintains records of referendum petitions, serves as registered agent for service of process on behalf of foreign corporations, and ensures that proposed amendments to the New Mexico Constitution are published in at least one newspaper in every county in the state for four consecutive weeks in both English and Spanish. [9] Moreover, the secretary of state is second in the line of succession after the governor and the lieutenant governor. The secretary of state therefore steps in as acting governor whenever the governor and lieutenant governor are both absent from the state.

List of New Mexico secretaries of state

#ImageNameTook officeLeft officeParty
1 Antonio Lucero.jpg Antonio J. Lucero 19121918 Dem
2 Manuel Martinez 1922.jpg Manuel Martínez 19191922 Rep
3 Soledad C. Chacon.jpg Soledad Chacón 19231926Dem
4 Jennie Fortune.jpg Jennie Fortune 19271928Dem
5 E. A. Perrault.jpg E. A. Perrault 19291930Rep
6 Marguerite P. Baca.jpg Marguerite P. Baca 19311934Dem
7 Elizabeth F. Gonzales.jpg Elizabeth F. Gonzales 19351938Dem
8 Jessie M. Gonzales.jpg Jessie M. Gonzales 19391942Dem
9 Cecilia T. Cleveland.jpg Cecilia T. Cleveland 19431946Dem
10 Alicia Valdez Romero.jpg Alicia Valdez Romero 19471950Dem
11 Beatrice Roach Gottlieb.jpg Beatrice Roach Gottlieb 19511954Dem
12 Natalie Smith Buck.jpg Natalie Smith Buck 19551958Dem
13 Betty Fiorina.jpg Betty Fiorina 19591962Dem
14 Alberta Miller.jpg Alberta Miller 19631966Dem
15 Ernestine Duran Evans.jpg Ernestine Durán Evans 19671970Dem
16 Betty Fiorina.jpg Betty Fiorina 19711974Dem
17 Ernestine Duran Evans.jpg Ernestine Durán Evans 19751978Dem
18 Shirley Hooper 19791982Dem
19 Clara Padilla Jones 19831986Dem
20 Rebecca Vigil-Giron 19871990Dem
21 Stephanie Gonzales 19911998Dem
22 Rebecca Vigil-Giron 19992006Dem
23 Mary Herrera 20072010Dem
24 Dianna Duran 20112015Rep
Mary Quintana (Acting) [10] 20152015
25 Brad Winter [11] 20152016Rep
26 Maggie Toulouse Oliver.jpg Maggie Toulouse Oliver 2016PresentDem
Source: [12]

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References

  1. Lee, Morgan (December 9, 2016). "New Mexico swears in newly elected secretary of state". SFGate. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  2. "Albuquerque Journal | Secretary of state resigns, reaches plea deal". www.abqjournal.com. Archived from the original on 2015-10-25.
  3. Native American Election Information Program
  4. New Mexico UCC Information
  5. New Mexico Central Filing System for Agricultural Liens
  6. New Mexico Partnership FAQ
  7. New Mexico Notary Public information
  8. New Mexico apostille information
  9. Service of Process upon the New Mexico Secretary of State
  10. New Mexico secretary of state resigns, enters guilty plea , Associated Press, Oct 23, 2015
  11. ABQ Councilor Brad Winter sworn in as secretary of state, KOB TV, Dec 15, 2015
  12. State of New Mexico (July 2012). Kathryn A. Flynn (ed.). 2012 Centennial Blue Book (PDF). Diana J. Duran. Office of the New Mexico Secretary of State. p. 224.