The Latest:
June 17, 2026
- New reporting from Source NM: "Local election officials reel over ‘logistical nightmare’ of Trump’s vote-by-mail order." Officials from across the country are grappling with Trump's steps to interfere with the upcoming general election. Katharine Clark, Santa Fe County Clerk, is among a group that has submitted a brief in ongoing litigation to block the order.
- It isn't just Trump. The Department of Justice is investigating and suing states and local governments and election officials. Learn more:
- Experts foresee DOJ trying to taking over polling place and seizing ballots during the upcoming general elections. Just Security explains.
- Democracy Docket alerts us to lawsuits filed by the Department of Justice that "signal[] its intention to cancel registrations across the nation in the days leading up to the midterm elections in November."
- Even though nine federal courts have already rejected efforts by the DOJ to obtain unredacted voter records, the DOJ is still trying. They are appealing a Wisconsin District Court decision on the issue to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, as reported by Wisconsin Public Radio.
- Jamelle Bouie has a powerful analysis of how Trump's and other Republicans' clearly false claims of fraud function to assert white supremacy and eliminate democracy in the United States.
Coming soon: Archives of past editions of The Latest.
Land of Action's Priorities
Here's what we are concentrating on in the fight for free and fair elections.
- Trump's unlawful efforts to interfere in elections throughout the country and the State of New Mexico's efforts to fight back.
- Trump's unconstitutional order to restrict and eliminate mail-in voting and the efforts to block it by New Mexico and by other parties across the nation.
- Tools and resources to protect ballot access and promote voter participation.
- How to register to vote and cast your ballot in New Mexico.
- Reliable sources of information about candidates on the ballot in the 2026 general elections this November in New Mexico.
This is not an opinion page. It is a repository of verified information for progressive activists throughout New Mexico concerned about the midterms, ballot access, get-out-the-vote, and free and fair elections. We offer it as a starting point for our users as they pursue their own research.
The Threats to Free and Fair Elections: What You Absolutely Need to Know
Trump's effort to unlawfully federalize elections in order to suppress voting
The Trump regime is working on multiple fronts to get the election results they want instead of what the voters pick. Trump and his cronies want to control whose vote counts and to eliminate mail-in voting. They also want to undermine confidence in how states run their elections. We cover these fronts below.
Front: Trump is attempting to control whose vote counts
At the heart of this front is the Elections Clause of the United States Constitution, which gives state legislatures and Congress joint sovereignty over elections. There is no constitutional role for the Executive branch in any elections in the United State. What Trump is doing is pure authoritarian overreach.
Trump's efforts to identify voters and decide which of them he wants to count have been unfolding for about thirteen months, in two stages. First, the Trump regime tried to create a master list of all those registered to vote in every state. As explained by the Campaign Legal Center, Trump's Department of Justice "began pressuring states to sign agreements that would require them to remove voters from the voter rolls flagged as ineligible by the federal government, even though eligible voters would almost certainly be caught up in such purges." More recently, the regime has begun to dictate who on such a list should or shouldn't be eligible to vote this November. None of this is legal.
Beginning in March 2025, Trump made clear his desire to "take over the voting" by expanding the federal government's role in elections. The Brookings Institute covered Trump's threat here. In May 2025, Trump's Department of Justice operationalized the Executive Branch's effort to obtain sensitive information about voters. The DOJ demanded from the states unredacted voter rolls, which include driver's license and partial social security numbers. For a deep dive on why these measures should concern all of us, see this Brennan Center analysis. Starting in September 2025, the Trump regime has been suing states who have refused to comply with its demands. New Mexico is among them. Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver discussed New Mexico's response here. The Brennan Center is tracking the lawsuit here.
Next, in March 2026, Trump issued another Executive Order (EO) on voting. This one "would significantly change how federal elections, particularly mail-in voting, would be administered," as Issue One describes. Both the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security are given large and illegal roles in elections. A coalition of states, including New Mexico, have brought suit to block this EO. Votebeat covers the filing, which is also flagged by California State Attorney General Bonta. The American Civil Liberties Union is tracking this lawsuit and others filed to prevent the March 2026 EO from being implemented. Despite the ongoing litigation, the Trump regime is barreling ahead, as reported by The New York Times.
Front: Trump wants to discredit how states administer elections by falsely crying "Fraud!"
Trump has also continued the campaign he began in 2016 to foment distrust in our elections by insisting there is massive voter fraud. In the past six months alone, Trump has repeated his false claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him at least 107 times. [🚩 Update, June 17, 2026: For further debunking of Trump's false claims, read or watch PBS Newshour's interview with Tammy Patrick, chief executive officer of programs at the National Association of Election Administrators and former Arizona election official.]
As of June 13, 2026, Trump has been concentrating on lies about California's recent primary elections, as Reuters reports. Democracy Docket and People have further details. Trump has been undermining state and local election officials since the start of his second White House stint. Learn more about his tactics and how to spot and resist them from this guest column at Democracy Docket.
🎯 Recommended action:
Get involved with Observe New Mexico Elections. "Observe New Mexico Elections (ONME) is a nonpartisan effort to strengthen trust and transparency in state elections. Led by New Mexicans and supported by The Carter Center, ONME trains voters from all 33 counties to observe electoral procedures, report impartially, and provide timely public information. Their standardized reports create a data-driven assessment of election conduct, helping reassure voters that New Mexico’s elections are fair and accurate. In 2026, ONME observers will monitor poll worker training, voting machine certification, absentee ballot processing, early voting, and Election Day voting in all 33 counties."
Front: Trump is attempting to restrict and eliminate mail-in voting
Overview
Mail-in voting, sometimes called vote-from-home or voting by absentee ballot, increases ballot access and voter participation in elections. Those who are pro-democracy support it. Those who favor authoritarianism don't. Not surprisingly, the Trump regime is actively trying to quash mail-in voting for the upcoming 2026 general elections.
In early April of 2026, Trump issued an executive order (EO) that continues to interfere with the States' constitutional authority to administer elections. Trump also began his effort to use the United States Postal Service (USPS) to eviscerate mail-in voting, especially in states that refuse to cooperate with his illegal effort to create a federal voter roll. The timing of this EO threatens to bring chaos to the general elections in November. Its substantive commands violate constitutional principles of the separation of powers, state sovereignty over elections generally, Congress' more limited authority over elections for federal office, and the statutorily mandated independence of the USPS from the executive branch. See this Brennan Center analysis for more explanation.
Trump is determined to deputize the USPS to carry out his illegal treatment of mail-in voting. "The U.S. Postal Service has proposed a new rule that would allow it to refuse to deliver mail ballots in states that don’t turn over voter rolls to the federal government," reports The New York Times.
For further discussion of the connection between mail-in voting and free and fair elections, check out this interview with Phil Keisling, the former Oregon Secretary of State who pioneered modern systems of vote by mail and the founder of the National Vote at Home Institute.
New Mexico, in coalition with other states, is suing to block the executive order
New Mexico is part of a coalition of state attorneys general, the attorney general of the District of Columbia, and the governor of Pennsylvania that has brought suit to block Trump's April EO. "This executive order is a direct overreach into the constitutional authority of states to run their own elections,” said Attorney General Raúl Torrez. “Our democracy depends on fair access to the ballot, and that includes lawful, accessible mail voting options." This lawsuit, which has been consolidated with others challenging the EO, is ongoing. Democracy Docket is tracking this litigation as well as additional, related lawsuits.
Tools and Resources to Protect Ballot Access and Promote Voter Participation
This section is under development.
Basic Information about Voting and Elections in New Mexico
The New Mexico Secretary of State runs elections. Their website is where you should start when seeking information about voting in New Mexico. At the voter portal you can find register to vote, check your existing registration, see sample ballots, find your polling place, request an absentee (mail-in) ballot, and more. Some important links:
- Know your voting rights. To report complaints or irregularities in a polling place: call the Office of the Secretary of State at 1-800-477-3632.
- Register to vote online.
- To vote by mail, you must request an absentee ballot and mail it in as early as possible before Election Day; you can also bring it to the County Clerk's office or an early voting location. Request an absentee ballot online.
- Know your County Clerk's office. If you have questions about or need help voting, you can contact your County Clerk for assistance.
Guides to Candidates on the Ballot in New Mexico this November
This section is under development.
