GRANTS, N.M. – The Grants City Council is scheduled to take a consequential vote Wednesday, May 27 – not on whether to change the City Charter yet, but on whether three proposed Charter amendments should go to voters, and whether that vote should happen in an August special election or on the November 2026 general election ballot, according to a memo and draft resolutions from City of Grants Clerk Frances Salas.
The issue appears as a cluster of items on the May 27 agenda: council will first select an election type for Charter ballot questions, and then consider approving one of two prepared resolutions depending on that choice.
Salas wrote that timing matters because the window to initiate a special election is approaching quickly. In her memo, she informs council that the cutoff to initiate a special election is in June, and that council direction is needed to avoid missing statutory deadlines.
What Council is Voting on – and What it is Not
A key point for readers: approving the May 27 resolution does not change the Charter by itself.
Salas reports in her memo to council that these resolutions are about authorizing ballot questions to be sent to the County Clerk so they can be printed for voter consideration. The actual decision on the Charter amendments would be made later – at the election itself, by the electorate of Grants.
Three Proposed Charter Questions
The paperwork prepared for council identifies three Charter amendment questions the city is preparing to submit to voters.
First, the city may ask whether to remove term limits for the Mayor, City Councilors and Municipal Judge.
Second, the city may ask whether to expand the Municipal Judge’s authority by allowing the judge to impose administrative and traffic safety fees tied to court operations and to expand the judge’s duties and responsibilities.
Third, the city may ask whether to allow the Mayor, City Councilors and Municipal Judge to hold another public office while serving their terms.
The questions address who can serve in city offices, how long they can remain there, and what authority the municipal court may exercise – all of ics as Grants continues grappling with Charter compliance issues since at least 2016.
August Special Election or November General Election
Under the paperwork provided by the clerk, the council’s decision is not simply political - it’s also logistical and financial.
If the council chooses a special election, the city would be looking at a mail-ballot-only election with an estimated cost of approximately $50,000, Salas wrote. The memo lists the election period as Aug. 11–25, 2026 and notes that final notification to the County Clerk requesting a special election is due in June, meaning council would need to approve the special-election resolution no later than the June 10, 2026 meeting.
If the council chooses the general election, Salas wrote the estimated cost could range from $0 to $26,000, depending on timing and whether an extra ballot page is required. The general election would be held Nov. 3, 2026, with in-person voting and absentee mail voting available. Under that schedule, Salas wrote final ballot questions are due to the County Clerk in August, and council would have until the Aug. 26, 2026 meeting to approve the resolution – though, she warned that waiting longer increases the risk of additional costs if a second ballot page becomes necessary at the last minute.
Two Draft Resolutions Already Prepared To match whichever election route council chooses, the clerk provided two resolutions in advance.
One resolution, No. 26-1951, gives notice to the County Clerk that Grants intends to place the ballot questions on the Nov. 3, 2026 general election ballot.
The other, No. 261952, requests that the County Clerk conduct a special municipal election, which would be conducted as a mail ballot election under state law, and would place the same three questions before voters.
The May 27 regular council meeting is scheduled for 4 p.m.