A. Except as provided otherwise in the Infrastructure Development Zone Act, the provisions of the Election Code [Chapter 1 NMSA 1978] shall govern all elections conducted pursuant to the Infrastructure Development Zone Act.

B. At an election for the organization of a new infrastructure development zone, the approving authority shall also order the submission of the proposition of issuing general obligation bonds or creating other general obligation indebtedness if the petition filed pursuant to Section 3 [5-17-3 NMSA 1978] of the Infrastructure Development Zone Act requests that the questions be submitted at the organization election.

C. After an infrastructure development zone is organized and the first board is elected, the board shall govern the conduct of all subsequent regular and special elections of the infrastructure development zone and shall render all interpretations and make all decisions as to controversies or other matters arising in the conduct of the elections.

D. Special elections may be conducted by the board after publication and notice no less than thirty days prior to the date of the election. The notice shall be mailed to all eligible electors and shall state:

(1) the date, time and place of the special election;

(2) a summary of the question or questions to be voted upon; and

(3) how an eligible elector may obtain a copy of the resolution of the board in which the special election was approved.

E. All powers and authority granted to the board by this section for the conduct of regular or special elections may be exercised in the absence of the board by the secretary or by an assistant secretary appointed by the board. The person named by the board who is responsible for the conducting of the election shall be the designated election official.

F. Not less than seventy-five days nor more than ninety days before a regular infrastructure development zone election, the designated election official shall provide notice by publication of a call for nominations for the election. The call shall state the director offices to be voted upon at the election, where a self-nomination and acceptance form may be obtained, the deadline for submitting the self-nomination and acceptance form to the designated election official and information on obtaining an absentee ballot.

G. Not less than sixty-seven days before the date of the regular infrastructure development zone election, any person who desires to be a candidate for the office of a director shall file a self-nomination and acceptance form or letter signed by the candidate and by an eligible elector as a witness to the signature of the candidate.

H. On the date of signing the self-nomination and acceptance form or letter, a candidate for director shall be an eligible elector of the infrastructure development zone.

I. The self-nomination and acceptance form or letter shall state the name of the infrastructure development zone in which the election will be held, the director office sought by the candidate, the term of office sought if more than one length of a director's term is to be voted upon at the election, the date of the election and the full name of the candidate as it is to appear on the ballot. Unless physically unable, all candidates and witnesses shall sign their own signature and shall print their names, their respective residence addresses, including the street number and name, the city or town, the county, telephone number and the date of signature on the self-nomination and acceptance form or letter.

J. The self-nomination and acceptance form or letter shall be filed with the designated election official or, if none has been designated, the presiding officer or the secretary of the board.

K. No person shall be permitted to vote in any election unless that person is an eligible elector.

History: Laws 2009, ch. 136, § 20.

Effective dates. — Laws 2009, ch. 136 contained no effective date provision, but, pursuant to N.M. Const., art. IV, § 23, was effective June 19, 2009, 90 days after the adjournment of the legislature.