GRANTS, N.M. – The General Election was held on November 8, 2022 and had New Mexicans elect their governor. In Cibola County, residents elected members of the county board of commissioners, two state representatives, and a new sheriff.
The election was safe and secure, with 6,850 Cibola residents casting their ballot. This is out of 14,948 registered voters in Cibola, meaning that less than half of registered voters voted in this election. Cibola has a population of 27,184, meaning that just over half of the county population is registered to vote, according to data from the US Census Bureau and New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office.
Cibola County will not see a major change in its governmental operations as most of the positions stayed the same. The most consequential of changes to stem from the 2022 General Election will primarily effect law enforcement, as a new sheriff is elected.
The below results are unofficial, they will not be official until the county board of commissioners meets to canvass votes, and then when the state meets to canvass votes.
Election Winners
Cibola County
Commission D.1
Winning her second term as Cibola County Commissioner, Christine Lowery (D) beat her opponent Richard S. Coop 938 to 224 votes.
Cibola County
Commission D.3
Winning his second term as Cibola County Commissioner, Ralph A. Lucero (D) beat his opponent Martin W. Hicks (R) 954 to 530 votes.
Cibola County Sherif
Stepping into the role as sheriff, Larry Diaz (D) beat Wesley Wayne Mallery (R) 3,906 to 2,731 votes. Diaz is expected to step into the role early as incumbent Sheriff Tony Mace is stepping down to train for his new judgeship position.
Cibola County Assessor
Dolores Vallejos ran unopposed and won her next term as assessor with 4,960 votes.
Cibola County
Probate Judge Grace Marie-Martinez Garcia ran unopposed and won her next term as probate judge with 4,792 votes.
Cibola County Magistrate Judge Position 1
Winning the seat previously held by Larry Diaz, the newly elected sheriff, incumbent Sheriff Tony Mace ran unopposed to be the next
Cibola County Magistrate Judge in Position 1. Cibola County Magistrate Judge Position 2
Running unopposed, Johnny Valdez won reelection to remain a magistrate judge.
NM House District 6
Eliseo Alcon (D) beat his opponent Jerri D. Rowe (R) 4,912 votes to 2,925 votes. Despite losing the popular vote, Rowe did win Cibola County with 1,680 votes to Alcon’s 1,630. Rowe was unable to compete with Alcon outside of Cibola, earning him another term as representative.
NM House District 69
Harry Garcia (D) ran unopposed and won his seat with 5,051 votes. NM Governor Incumbent Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) handily won her reelection bid with 369,518 statewide votes. She beat Mark Ronchetti (R) who had 324,376 votes.
NM Congress
Seat District 2
In what was a close race, and the third time in a row this seat is changing hands, Gabriel Vasquez (D) beat Yvette Herrell (R) 96,870 votes to 95,560.
NM Secretary of State
Maggie Tolouse Oliver (D) beat her opponent Audrey Trujillo (R) 385,879 votes to 300,460.
NM Attorney General
Raul Torrez (D) will be the new attorney general after beating his opponent Jeremy Gay (R) 399,144 votes to 245,486 votes
NM Auditor
Joseph M. Maestas (D) beat his opponent Travis Sanchez (L) 399,144 votes to 245,486.
NM Treasurer
Laura M. Montoya (D) beat her opponent Harry B. Montoya (R) 369,456 votes to 325,888.
NM Commissioner of Public Lands
Stephanie Garcia Richards (D) beat her opponent Jefferson L. Byrd (R) 378,973 votes to 310,545.
Ballot Measures
All three constitutional amendments and all three bond questions passed.
Statement from the Secretary of State
“New Mexicans turned out in great numbers [on Nov. 8] to make their voices heard and participate in our democracy,” said Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver. “The 2022 General Election was successful because of the dedicated, coordinated effort of many individuals and agencies, including all 33 County Clerks and their staff, poll workers, vendors, and our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners. Multiple levels of security and accountability are built into our election process to ensure every vote counts and the public should remain wary of misinformation about this election that is likely to circulate in the coming days. As the canvassing process occurs over the next weeks, I encourage all New Mexicans to learn more about the ways election administrators protect your vote and keep our democracy strong.”
This election was not without scrutiny as the county is in hot water for limiting early voting opportunities for Pueblo of Acoma residents to only three days in the pueblo, while early voting remained opened for weeks in the City of Grants.
All election results remain unofficial until the canvassing process is complete and the State Board of Canvass certifies the official results. County canvassing boards shall meet to approve the report of the canvass no sooner than six days (November 14) and no later than ten days (November 18) after the election. Counties with more than 150,000 voters, however, can meet no sooner than six days but no later than thirteen days after the election (November 21). The State Board of Canvass will meet on November 29, 2022 to certify the official results and order any recounts, once all of these results have been certified, winners will be made official.