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New Mexico secretary of state says she's experiencing harassment after the election

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New Mexico secretary of state says she's experiencing harassment after the election


SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico’s top elections regulator said Tuesday that she has been the target of harassing and threatening comments on social media after affirming President-elect Donald Trump’s national election victory in an attempt to halt conspiracy theories.

New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver shared her concerns as she briefed a legislative panel about administration of the general election and progress toward certifying the vote tally amid a surge in same-day voter registration. She said she plans to contact law enforcement about the threats.

“I am currently experiencing threats, harassment — from even some members of this committee — online,” said Toulouse Oliver, a Democrat who has been subject repeatedly to threats in the past. “And I want to say that thankfully we have a law in place that protects me from this behavior.”

A 2023 state law made it a fourth-degree felony to intimidate a state or local election official.

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After the hearing, Toulouse Oliver said she attempted to “nip some emerging conspiracy theories in the bud” with a post on the social platform X that stated Trump had won outright while acknowledging that some states were still counting votes and fewer voters showed up to the polls this year. In response, she said she was accused of committing treason and told she was “in the crosshairs.”

Toulouse Oliver later switched off public access to that X account — used for political and private conversations — and said she was gathering information to refer the matter to state police and the state attorney general. An official X account for the secretary of state’s office remains public.

Toulouse Oliver accused Republican state Rep. John Block, of Alamogordo, of egging on and “helping to foment the anger and some of the nasty comments online.” She did not cite specific posts.

Block said he too has been a victim on online harassment and “that has no place in this (legislative) body or anywhere else.”

“If it gets to violent threats like you described that you got, I apologize that that is happening to you,” Block said during the committee hearing.

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Toulouse Oliver told lawmakers at the hearing that she’ll advocate for new security measures for state and local election workers to keep their home addresses confidential on government websites. A law enacted in 2023 offers that confidentiality to elected and appointed public officials.

Trump lost the general election for president in New Mexico to Democratic nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris. Democratic candidates were reelected to the state’s three congressional seats and a U.S. Senate seat, while Republicans gained a few seats in legislative races but remain in the state House and Senate minorities.

More than 52,000 people used same-day registration procedures to vote in New Mexico.





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New Mexico

Reckoning over César Chávez’s legacy deepens in New Mexico amid swift erasure plans

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Reckoning over César Chávez’s legacy deepens in New Mexico amid swift erasure plans





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New Mexico

New Mexico Environment Department to hold hearings on Project Jupiter air quality

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New Mexico Environment Department to hold hearings on Project Jupiter air quality





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New Mexico

UNM plans to build new gates along Central

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UNM plans to build new gates along Central


ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico plans to build new gates at four campus entrances along Central that will close nightly.

The gates will replace manual barriers in a project expected to cost about $1.5 million.

The Board of Regents approved the security upgrades for the UNM campus.

University officials said the gates will automatically close nightly from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

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The gates will go in near Princeton Drive, Stanford Drive, Yale Boulevard and Terrace Street on the south end of campus.

A current rendering shows the gate completely blocking the road. Officials said the change will reduce unauthorized traffic and allow police officers to focus more effectively on prevention and response.

Construction will start in May. University officials hope to finish the project by September.



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