Dear editor, Dear Attorney General Torrez, I am writing to inform you of what I believe is an infringement of my rights as a U.S. citizen and member of Continental Divide Electric Cooperative. A former Grants City Council councilor, I have applied for ballot position to sit on the board of the Co-op since the late 1990s. Any time a sitting member's seat is challenged, the business-portion of the meeting dies due to lack of quorum. No quorum means no vote to elect new board members, thus, current members retain their seats.
The Co-op currently provides a three-hour voting window for members from Cibola and McKinley counties. The board's owner members must meet a 3% quorum from its 18,000-plus membership to allow the annual meeting to proceed and to vote for an At Large member. The current At-Large board member has acquired 35 consecutive years in office.
Some board members have retained their seats and monetary compensation for 40-plus years, mostly without a vote, while others have passed away in office. Yet the board refuses to make voting more accessible for Co-op members. Voting by mail would eliminate the 3% quorum issue - but then it potentially could end their reign.
The Co-op's billing system is by mail. We are sent survey questions regarding co-op business by mail. Where is the justice in a three-hour window to acquire a 3% quorum to hold the annual meeting? Is the process a corrupt scheme to retain a lifetime seat? When I informed the current At-Large member of my intention to run against him, his sarcastic reply was, 'Come and get me!'
Could you please send government officials to oversee our election and secure the ballot box from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., April 29, 2023? It would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you, Keith Gottlieb - 35 years Joe Hoskins - 13 years Alex Griego - 9 years Exposed, Resigned Rio Rancho Resident Grant Clawson - 29 years - Passed away Alfred Saavedra - 28 years Lyle Adair - 42 years passed away Wesley Malcolm - 6 years - Replaced Member With 30 Plus Years Lloyd Ortega - 4 years 9 months - Replaced Member With 42 Years Claudio Romero - 30 years Thank you, Ruben Sandoval