The term of office for each judge of the metropolitan court is four years. Judges shall be appointed, elected and retained in accordance with Article 6 of the constitution of New Mexico.

History: 1978 Comp., § 34-8A-4.1, enacted by Laws 1981, ch. 318, § 2; 1988, ch. 115, § 1; 1990, ch. 114, § 1; 1997, ch. 180, § 3; 1999 (1st S.S.), ch. 4, § 1; 2005, ch. 284, § 4.

Temporary provisions. — Laws 2019, ch. 212, § 280 provided that the term of a metropolitan court judge serving in a division numbered 2 or every second number thereafter that was set to expire on December 31, 2022 shall expire on December 31, 2024, subject to the provisions of the Nonpartisan Judicial Retention Act and Article 6 of the constitution of New Mexico.

Cross references. — For selection and retention of metropolitan court judges, see N.M. Const., art. VI, § 33.

The 2005 amendment, effective July 1, 2005, changes "elected term" to "term"; provides that judges shall be appointed, elected and retained in accordance with the N.M. Const., art. VI; deletes former Subsection B which provided for the election of a person appointed to fill a vacancy on the metropolitan court; deletes former Subsection C which provided for the appointment, term of service and election of the Bernalillo county metropolitan judges in divisions thirteen, fourteen and fifteen; and deletes former Subsection D which provided for the appointment, term of service and election of the Bernalillo county metropolitan judge for division 16.

The 1999 amendment, effective May 21, 1999, deleted Subsection B, which read "Judges of the metropolitan court who have been previously elected in a partisan election or who were serving as metropolitan judges on January 1, 1989 in divisions one through twelve shall be subject to retention or rejection on a nonpartisan ballot at the 1990 general election for a four-year term ending December 31, 1994", redesignated subsequent subsections accordingly, and added present Subsection D.

The 1997 amendment, effective July 1, 1997, added the last sentence of Subsection D.

The 1990 amendment, effective January 1, 1991, rewrote this section to the extent that a detailed comparison is impracticable.