Forms for all candidates who will be vying for seats on the Las Cruces City Council in the November 2 municipal elections are now available online.
Candidates can fill out their Declaration of Candidacy, Candidate Disclosure Statement, and initial financial reports on the City’s website, at https://www.las-cruces.org/2501/Municipal-Elections. For the first time ever, candidates can fill out forms online for City Council elections.
Candidates will still be required to file in person from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. August 24 in the Bureau of Elections Office at the Doña Ana Government Center, 845 N. Motel Boulevard. The Candidate Filing website will prompt candidates to print the forms they will need to provide for formal in-person filing.
“We wanted to make the filing process as transparent and efficient as possible, which meant converting everything to digital and doing away with the bulky paper packets,” said City Clerk Christine Rivera.
All financial reports submitted by candidates will be filed on the website and are due on the following dates: September 21, October 18, and December 2. The form will automatically do all the arithmetic for candidates, in hopes of cutting down on the number of financial reports that are filed late or have to be corrected.
“Transparency and public access are key missions of the City Clerk’s office, so we are excited to have all candidate information available to the public via the same website,” Rivera said. “Anyone can search and view all financial reports as soon as candidates submit them.”
Candidate filings will be open to anyone residing, and registered to vote in City Council Districts 3, 5, and 6. Rivera urged potential candidates to verify their voter registration information with the Doña Ana County Clerk’s office before August 4, which is the deadline for candidates to make any changes.
Rivera added the City always encourages civic participation year round, but especially for City elections.
“I hope everyone finds the process to be accessible and simple,” Rivera said. “I couldn’t predict a number of candidates or voter turnout in November, but we always hope for high numbers across the board.”
Any questions about the website, or City elections in general, should be directed to the City Clerk’s Office at 575/541-2115.