Santa Fe Voters Face Crowded Field of Mayoral Hopefuls and Competitive City Council Races

Strategic Insights -

Santa Fe voters are in for a treat as eight candidates vie for the mayor's seat and nine hopefuls compete for four city council positions. The crowded field is set to provide an exciting campaign with three races utilizing ranked choice voting, a system that allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference. District 1 and 2 residents will have competitive council races to succeed departing incumbents, while incumbents in districts 3 and 4 will be running for reelection unopposed. With early voting starting on October 7 and the general election on November 4, candidates have a tight window to campaign and make their mark.

Key Takeaways:

  • There will be eight candidates vying for the mayor's seat, with Michael Garcia and Ron Trujillo qualifying for public financing.
  • Katherine Rivera, David Montoya, and Pat Feghali are competing for City Council District 1, with Feghali and Rivera using public financing.
  • Paul Bustamante, Aurora Martinez, Liz Barrett, and Leroy Trujillo will be competing for City Council District 2, with Bustamante using public financing.
  • District 3 Councilor Lee Garcia and District 4 Councilor Amanda Chavez will be running unopposed, with Chavez qualifying for public funding but capping her campaign at $1,500.
  • The mayoral race and City Council Districts 1 and 2 races will use ranked choice voting, while City Council Districts 3 and 4 will have uncontested elections.
  • The deadline for candidate petitions was Tuesday, and all 17 candidates who applied were qualified by the New Mexico Secretary of State's Office.
  • Early voting begins on October 7, and the general election will take place on November 4.

Statistics:

  • 8 candidates will be vying for the mayor's seat.
  • 9 candidates will be competing for 4 city council positions.
  • 3 city council races will use ranked choice voting.
  • 2 city council incumbents will be running unopposed (Lee Garcia and Amanda Chavez).
  • $15,000 is the maximum amount of public funding available to candidates in contested races.
  • $1,500 is the maximum amount of public funding available to City Councilor Amanda Chavez due to her uncontested election.

Sources:

  • New Mexico Secretary of State's voter information portal
  • Email from Katharine Clark, County Clerk
  • Email from Andréa Salazar, City Clerk
  • Article by Carina Julig, published in the Santa Fe New Mexican.