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Santa Fe residents headed to the polls on Tuesday to elect a new mayor through the ranked-choice voting system, marking only the second occasion this method has been employed for this role.
With eight candidates vying for the position, many voters are still navigating the intricacies of ranked-choice voting. This diverse lineup includes Santa Fe County Commissioner Justin Greene, City Council Member Michael Garcia, former council members Ronald Trujillo and JoAnne Coppler, Oscar Salazar Rodriguez, CFO of the New Mexico Finance Authority, businesswoman Letitia Montoya, journalist Tarin Nix, and academic Jeanne O’Dean.
Affordable housing emerged as a dominant issue in the electoral debate, alongside concerns over crime, public safety, and homelessness. In terms of campaign financing, Greene led the candidates with $130,837 in funds, trailed by Coppler, who raised $90,161, as reported by the Santa Fe New Mexican.
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Affordable housing was a top issue in the race, along with crime, public safety and homelessness. Greene led the pack on fundraising with a cumulative total of $130,837, followed by Coppler at $90,161, according to reporting by the Santa Fe New Mexican.
Under ranked-choice voting, voters rank the candidates by preference. Vote are distributed to each candidates based on first choices from the ballot. If no candidate earns more than 50% of the vote, the candidate with the least number of votes is eliminated and the votes redistributed to other candidates based on how voters ranked them. The process continues until a candidate gets the majority needed to win.
Polls in New Mexico close at 9 p.m. ET Tuesday. See results of the Santa Fe mayoral race in the tracker below:
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