Constitutional Amendments (Arguments For and Against) Abridged

Brief Analysis of Proposed Constitutional Amendment 3

2014

Summary of Proposed Constitutional Amendment 3
Constitutional Amendment 3 would amend Article 6, Section 34 of the Constitution of New Mexico to remove the requirement that justices and judges who are seeking to remain in office file a declaration of candidacy on the same day as candidates in the primary election. If adopted, the date on which a justice or judge must file for a retention election will be determined by statute.

Background and Information Regarding Judicial Retention Elections and Deadlines for Declarations of Candidacy
Justices of the supreme court and judges of the court of appeals, district courts and metropolitan courts run only once in a partisan general election. After that, they run in uncontested retention elections held in November at the general election. The Constitution of New Mexico requires judges and justices wishing to remain in office to file their declarations of candidacy for retention on the same date that candidates for other offices must file for primary elections. This election procedure was adopted in 1988 as part of a larger change in how justices and judges are initially appointed and retained in office.