Doña Ana County early voting jumps 30% from 2022 midterm
Early in-person voting in Doña Ana County increased 30.4% over 2022, with more than 42,000 early and absentee ballots recorded ahead of Election Day.
More than 42,000 county voters cast early or absentee ballots ahead of Election Day, according to figures released Tuesday by the New Mexico secretary of state's office.
Damien Willis, Organ Mountain News
LAS CRUCES - Early in-person voting in Doña Ana County increased more than 30% compared with the 2022 midterm election, according to figures released Tuesday morning by the New Mexico secretary of state's office.
A total of 34,724 county voters cast ballots early in person ahead of Tuesday's general election, compared with 26,639 in 2022. The increase of 8,085 ballots represents a 30.4% jump over the previous midterm election.
Including absentee voting, 42,127 ballots were recorded in Doña Ana County before Election Day, compared with 34,054 early and absentee ballots reported in the state's certified 2022 election canvass.
That represents an increase of 8,073 ballots, or 23.7%, although the 2022 absentee total includes ballots received through Election Day, while the 2026 figure reflects ballots recorded before Tuesday.
The figures provide a county-level look at increased participation after New Mexico early in-person voting surpassed 2022 midterm levels statewide, as Organ Mountain News reported Monday.
Early and absentee voting in Doña Ana County
According to the secretary of state's figures:
| Voting method | 2022 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Early in person | 26,639 | 34,724 |
| Absentee | 7,415 | 7,403 |
| Total | 34,054 | 42,127 |
The county's early in-person voting increased substantially, while the absentee figures remained nearly identical. The 2026 absentee total could increase as additional ballots are received by Tuesday's 7 p.m. deadline.
Democrats account for more than half of county's early and absentee voters
The secretary of state's report also provides a breakdown of participation by voters' party registrations.
Among the 42,127 Doña Ana County voters who cast ballots before Election Day:
- 22,611 were registered Democrats.
- 11,105 were registered Republicans.
- 8,057 declined to state a party affiliation.
- 354 were registered with other parties or classifications.
Democrats accounted for approximately 53.7% of the county's early and absentee voters, compared with 26.4% for Republicans and 19.1% for voters who declined to state a party affiliation.
Those figures reflect party registration, not votes cast for individual candidates.
Statewide voting exceeds 459,000 before Election Day
Across New Mexico, 459,220 voters cast ballots early in person or by absentee ballot ahead of Tuesday's election, including 385,151 early in-person voters and 74,069 absentee voters.
The statewide early in-person total exceeded the 353,569 ballots cast through that method during the 2022 midterm election by 31,582 votes, or approximately 8.9%.
The secretary of state's first Election Day report also recorded 1,275 ballots cast Tuesday in Doña Ana County and 14,511 statewide. Those votes were not included in the pre-Election Day totals.
Additional voter-count reports are scheduled throughout Tuesday, including updates after 10 a.m., 2 p.m., 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Election Day voting and local results
Polls opened at 7 a.m. Tuesday and remain open until 7 p.m. Voters may cast ballots at any voting convenience center within their county.
Completed absentee ballots must be received by 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Unofficial election results are expected to become available after polls close.
Organ Mountain News will provide Election Night coverage focused on races and ballot questions affecting Las Cruces and Doña Ana County, including county commission contests, State House races, the proposed $26 million Thomas Branigan Memorial Library bond and the Doña Ana Soil and Water Conservation District levy.
Readers can follow local election developments throughout the evening at Organ Mountain News.
Damien Willis is founder and editor of Organ Mountain News. If you have a personal story to share or a lead we should follow up on, reach out at OrganMountainNews@gmail.com or connect with him on X at @damienwillis.
