New Mexico Supreme Court orders GOP-led commission to certify primary vote
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Dominion voting machine. Photo: Ty O'Neil/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
The New Mexico State Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the Republican-led Otero County Commission to certify the 2022 primary election results no later than Friday, The Guardian reports.
Why it matters: The New Mexico secretary of state sued the commission Tuesday over its refusal to certify election results. The commission's decision, which cited concerns over Dominion voting machines, underscores the extent to which former President Trump's illegitimate claims of election fraud have manifested in distrust in elections on all levels, including locally.
Driving the news: The lawsuit comes after the three-member Otero County commission voted Monday against certifying the results of the June 7 primary.
- "New Mexico’s 2022 Primary Election was conducted with the highest standards of election administration by dedicated county clerks and civil servants across our state," Democratic Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver said in a statement.
- "I do not trust these machines and I want Otero County to have a fair election for everybody," Otero County Commission Chairwoman Vickie Marquardt said, the Alamogordo Daily News reports.
Between the lines: Dominion, one of the largest voting-machine companies in the U.S., came under sharp focus after the 2020 election, when Trump and his allies promoted baseless claims that the company rigged the election.
- The voting-machine company has filed defamation lawsuits against conservative media networks and Trump allies over their false claims.
What she's saying: "The post-election canvassing process is a key component of how we maintain our high levels of election integrity in New Mexico," Toulouse Oliver said.
- "The Otero County Commission is flaunting that process by appeasing unfounded conspiracy theories and potentially nullifying the votes of every Otero County voter who participated in the Primary," she added.
Go deeper... Few cases of voter fraud in Arizona undermine Trump's claim
