Section 60-5A-1 - Elections for local optionAny municipality containing more than five thousand persons according to the latest United States census, whether the county in which that municipality is situated has adopted the local option provisions of the Liquor Control Act or any former act or not, or any county in the state may adopt local option in the county or municipality upon the following terms and conditions:
A. the qualified electors of a proposed local option district may petition the governing body by filing a petition in the appropriate office to hold an election for the purpose of determining whether the county or municipality shall adopt the local option provisions of the Liquor Control Act. If the number of the signatures of the electors on the petition equals or exceeds five percent of the number of qualified electors of the district, the governing body shall call an election within ninety days of the verification of the petition; provided that the date is not in conflict with the provisions of Section 1-24-1 NMSA 1978. The governing body shall refuse to recognize the petition if more than three months have elapsed between the date of the first signature and the filing of the petition. The election also may be initiated by a resolution adopted by the governing body of the proposed local option district without a petition having been submitted;B. the election shall be called, conducted, counted and canvassed pursuant to the provisions of the Local Election Act [Chapter 1, Article 22 NMSA 1978];C. except as otherwise provided in this section, contests, recounts and rechecks shall be permitted as provided for in the case of candidates. Applications for contests, recounts or rechecks may be filed by any person who voted in the election, and service shall be made upon the county clerk or municipal clerk as the case may be;D. if a majority of all the votes cast at the election is cast in favor of the sale, service or public consumption of alcoholic beverages in the county or municipality, the chair of the governing body shall declare by order entered upon the records of the county or municipality that the county or municipality has adopted the local option provisions of the Liquor Control Act and shall notify the department of the results;E. if an election is held under the provisions of the Liquor Control Act in a county that contains within its limits a municipality of more than five thousand persons according to the latest United States census, it is not necessary for the qualified electors in the municipality to file a separate petition asking for a separate or different vote on the question of adopting the local option provisions of the Liquor Control Act by the municipality. The election in the county shall be conducted so as to separate the votes in the municipality from those in the remaining parts of the county. If a majority of the voters in the county, including the voters in the municipality, votes against the sale, service or public consumption of alcoholic beverages in the county, the county shall not adopt the local option provisions of the Liquor Control Act; but if a majority of the votes in the municipality is in favor of the sale, service or public consumption of alcoholic beverages, the municipality shall have adopted the local option provisions of the Liquor Control Act. Nothing contained in this subsection shall prevent any municipality from having a separate election under the terms of this section;F. a county or municipality composing a local option district under the provisions of the Liquor Control Act or a former act may vote to discontinue the sale, service or public consumption of alcoholic beverages in the local option district; the discontinuance shall become effective on the ninetieth day after the local option election is held; andG. nothing in this section shall invalidate any local option election held pursuant to any former act prior to July 1, 1981.Laws 1981, ch. 39, § 15; 1985, ch. 208, § 124; 1987, ch. 323, § 27.Amended by 2019, c. 212,s. 235, eff. 4/3/2019.Amended by 2018, c. 79,s. 98, eff. 7/1/2018.