VOTE 2023
YOUR VOTE MATTERS IN EVERY ELECTION!
¡TU VOTO CUENTA EN TODAS LAS ELECCIONES, ES IMPORTANTE!
The November 7, 2023, Regular Local Election will decide who represents you. The candidate information in this Voter Guide was obtained by means of a questionnaire sent to all the candidates. Their unedited responses have been printed exactly as submitted — up to the word limit for each response.
El 7 de noviembre de 2023 en la Elección Local Ordinaria se decidirá quién nos va a representar. La información dada por los candidatos fue obtenida mediante un cuestionario enviado a todos ellos. Sus respuestas fueron impresas, sin editarlas, exactamente como las enviaron, hasta el límite de palabras para cada respuesta.
The League of Women Voters is a non-partisan political organization for men and women that does not support or oppose any political party or candidate. The League provides unbiased, factual information so that voters may be well informed.
HOW TO VOTE IN SANTA FE COUNTY REGISTER to vote OR confirm you are already registered by going to SanteFe.vote. You can do same day registration and vote up to and including Election Day, November 7. TO VOTE EARLY (before November 7): Option 1. Request an Absentee Ballot before October 24 at SantaFe.vote. Ballots mailed starting October 10; return in drop boxes (see list of locations) or mail to County Clerk. Option 2. Same-day registration and early in-person voting at the County Clerk’s Office (100 Catron Street) October10-November 4. For hours go to SantaFe.vote. Option 3. Alternative Voting Sites — same-day registration and early voting. October 21-November 4. See list of locations. TO VOTE ON ELECTION DAY, November 7: Sample ballot and polling places can be found at SantaFe.vote. Hours: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
La Liga de las Mujeres Votantes es una organización política no partidista de hombres y mujeres que ni apoya ni se opone a ningún candidato o partido político en específico. La liga proporciona información imparcial y veraz para que los votantes puedan estar bien informados.
CÓMO VOTAR EN EL CONDADO DE SANTA FE REGÍSTRATE para votar, O confirma si estás registrado yendo al sitio web de SantaFe.vote. Puedes empadronarte y votar hasta el día mismo de las elecciones, el 7 de noviembre. PARA VOTAR TEMPRANO (antes del 7 de noviembre): Opción 1. Solicita tu boleta para votar por correo antes del 24 de octubre en SantaFe.vote. Las boletas enviadas por correo a partir del 10 de octubre, después de llenarse se pueden, o depositar en los buzones especiales para la elección o mandar por correo a la oficina del secretario del condado (County Clerk’s Office) en 100 Catron Street 87501 Opción 2. Para registrarse y votar temprano el mismo día y en persona, en la oficina del secretario del condado (County Clerk’s Office) del 10 de octubre al 4 de noviembre. Para los horarios de la oficina, visita el sitio web: SantaFe.vote.
Opción 3. Sitios de votación alternativos: registro del mismo día y votación temprana. 21 de octubre-4 de noviembre. Por favor cheque la lista de ubicaciones PARA VOTAR EL 7 DE NOVIEMBRE, DÍA DE LAS ELECCIONES: Las boletas de muestra y los lugares de votación se pueden encontrar en Santafe.vote. Horarios: de 7 a.m. a 7 p.m.
EARLY VOTING SITES/SITIOS PARA VOTAR TEMPRANO (drop boxes at Early Voting Sites)/(buzones especiales para votar en los Sitios de Votación Temprana) October 21 to November 4 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays/21 de octubre-4 de noviembre de 11 a.m a 7 p.m. (de martes a viernes) y de 10 a.m. a 6 p.m. (sábados) Santa Cruz Abedon Lopez Community Center 155A Camino De Quintana Santa Fe Christian Life Church 121 Siringo Road Santa Fe Community College 6401 Richards Avenue
November 7 Regular Local Election
VOTER GUIDE
24-HR DROP BOXES/BUZONES ESPECIALES PARA VOTAR LAS 24 HR (available day and night)/(disponibles día y noche): Santa Fe Santa Fe Convention Center 119 S. Federal Street. Nancy Rodriguez Center 1 Prairie Dog Loop La Cienega Community Center 136 Camino San Jose Southside Branch Library 6599 Jaguar Drive Edgewood SFC Edgewood Satellite 114 Quail Trail Eldorado Max Coll Community Center Avenida Torreon Pojoaque Pojoaque Pueblo Plaza Pojoaque County Satellite Office 5 W. Gutierrez, Ste. 9
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON VOTING IN THE NOVEMBER 7, REGULAR LOCAL ELECTION Vote411.org: Online expanded Voter Guide and general voting information LWVSFC.org: link to Voter Guide and other voting information LWV Santa Fe County Help Line: 505.982.9766
Santa Fe Santa Fe County Fair Building 3229 Rodeo Road Santa Fe Southside Branch Library 6599 Jaguar Drive Eldorado Max Coll Corridor Community Center 16 Avenida Torreon Edgewood Town of Edgewood Administrative Office 171A State Road 344 Pojoaque Pueblo Plaza Pojoaque County Satellite Office 5 W. Gutierrez, Ste. 9
SANTA FE CITY COUNCIL, DISTRICT 1 The City Council is the city’s primary legislative body. It is responsible for adopting the city budget, levying taxes, and making or amending city laws, policies and ordinances. Each of the four City Council districts elects two City Councilors to staggered four-year terms. Candidates must be registered voters who reside within the district from which they are running.
The League asked:
Geno Zamora genozamorafor santafe.com
What are your priorities for the city going forward?
How would you address povertyrelated issues, such as food insecurity and homelessness?
What recommendations do you have to address crime?
How can the Council help the administration address recent complaints about the appearance of city properties?
I want to ensure that Santa Fe is a place where everyone belongs. That means ensuring a safe community, affordable housing, and an economy that supports our residents. We must fully staff first responders, support the Alternative Response Unit, and address substance abuse and behavioral health. We must increase affordable housing and build a portfolio of housing for middle- and low-income families. We need to increase the number of high wage jobs for our residents.
Addressing the root causes, including a lack of affordable housing and a need for higher wages, is a community obligation. I support using every tool in our toolbox to increase affordable housing and transportation options. We must raise the living wage in Santa Fe to a wage that enables people to take care of basic necessities like housing, transportation, utilities, healthcare, and food, while growing and expanding local businesses and new jobs that will train and employ our residents.
We need to address not only crime, but also the factors that fuel crime, like mental health, substance abuse, and financial desperation. We should listen to our first responders to hear what they face and provide them with the tools they need to focus on their core roles. We must expand modern diversion programs like the Alternative Response Unit. We should work with other governmental entities to address substance abuse and mental health and provide increased access to treatment programs.
The City must expect, fund, train, and empower our employees to be “masters of basics” like infrastructure, facilities, recreation centers, and parks. The Council has a duty to provide full funding to these services, support workers providing the services, and hold leadership accountable. It’s time that we accept our responsibility to modernize our advance facility planning and stop being shocked when weeds come back month after month or when our outdated and unimproved facilities fail.
My priorities are related to the basics of running this city. Renewed attention to infrastructure, enforcement and preservation. My goals are: 1) Improving of the day-to-day experience for the citizens that currently live here and 2) Bringing back the sparkle to Santa Fe.
The City must pick up the pace of progress on recommendations already presented to the Mayor’s office in these areas. I would like to see veterans on the top of the list for the pallet home pilot project. I would like to see fresh food markets more of a possibility in the south side. Possibly expand the wonderful work provided by the various food organizations- bringing it closer to neighborhoods in need. Improvement in public transportation is required to allow equitable access to services.
The perception is that Santa Fe in being taken advantage of by various law breakers: thieves, drug pushers, speeders, drag racers, vandals, etc. We must have the political will to change this tide! I would like to see classification and prioritization of crimes revisited, a crack-down of open-air drug use, and partnering with big box stores to pilot new store models. Enforcement is key! More public safety staffing is required. We must change our reputation of being a lawless Santa Fe.
This question underscores why I decided to run. The citizens remain frustrated with the look, feel, and sounds of Santa Fe. Residents are frustrated trying to get responses from various departments. The City Council’s primary role is to enact local legislation, determine policies, and adopt budgets. The Council should expect accountability from the City Manager. Maintenance of city properties should be routine. The fact that there are unresolved complaints says a lot about on-going neglect.
We’re the City Different, and it’s time we do things differently. We cannot rely on old solutions and leadership. Fiscal responsibility must remain top priority. Without final audits any monies given to the city will be on hold. There are real projects that need to move forward and will not be able to without these funds. Infrastructure: Santa Fe, the oldest capital city, also has some of the oldest infrastructure. Some houses receive drinking water from lead connections on the city side. The sewer is collapsing from the inside out. City water lines are leaking our most precious commodity: water. Parks and recreation: Great outdoor spaces are important. If you remember back to the pandemic, being able to go outside and spend quality time in a park was a reward. Our children need places to play, we need to keep our future engaged. Public Safety: All residents of Santa Fe should feel safe in their homes, on their streets, and in public places. This is not always the case.
The unhoused population in Santa Fe continues to grow. In my early twenties living in Santa Fe, I was acquainted with almost all the unhoused members of our community, and we all looked out for them. Today the unhoused is estimated at over 1,000. The city should work in conjunction with non-profits to provide shelter for those in need. Not every unhoused wants to be in a shelter. Church and other non-profits are doing a good portion of helping cure food insecurity in Santa Fe. The city can work in conjunction with these groups to provide services.
Our police department is more of a reporting agency than that of a crime prevention entity. We must let our police officers do police work and have other departments taking care of duties not involving police work. Santa Fe must work to have a fully staffed police department. I would sit down with the Chiefs of the department to see what is working, and what needs to be changed. Santa Fe must also work not only on its city code, but also with state legislators to put penalties on the books with real consequences for repeat offenses.
Santa Fe as a city has certain responsibilities to its residents. The appearance of the city is something that should be given major attention. Tourism being one of our biggest revenue generators, we must pay attention to the appearance of the city. Observation of our city streets, buildings and community spaces is a first step in helping to decipher where services are in most need. Allocating funds at budget time.
1) Making sure we are maintaining and creating a truly affordable housing stock, so that working families can live in safe, secure, and affordable housing. Being intentional in increasing affordable housing can ensure that all our city’s future generations have the same equity in the property market. 2) Santa Fe needs a comprehensive public safety plan. A post-COVID world has led to an increase in crime, mental & behavioral health issues, substance abuse, and housing insecurity. Meanwhile, access to services has decreased and many have found themselves facing extremely hard times, and even harder choices. We must go above policing only, and create pathways to help community members access safety-net services when they are in crisis.3) Creating good-paying jobs so people have the means to secure a better life for themselves and their families without leaving the city.
It is in all our best interests to ensure all citizens are thriving. That means tackling food insecurity and homelessness head on. In addition to wrap-around services for the unhoused and mentally ill, we also need feasible stepping stones to success. In a recent study released by The Task Force to Recommend How to Prevent Childhood Hunger, the most effective policy change that can be made to address hunger is to help raise household income. We can implement regulations such as a livable wage, which can be anywhere from $18 to $50 an hour in Santa Fe, according to the MIT living wage calculator, or create higher fees for developers that choose not to include affordable housing in their developments.
In order to address crime, we need to tackle the root problems that cause it. That means addressing the housing shortage that leaves people without shelter, or the lack of job opportunities and economic squeeze of inflation, or the lack of substance and mental health services. Santa Fe needs to take a proactive role to ensure we are driving down the causes of crime. With our chronic lack of law enforcement officers and a long history of misusing city funds, we must reevaluate our budgeting and invest in programs that have a measurable impact on the communities it is intended to serve.
Investing in city services is a must. Our parks and recreation team is tasked with keeping the State’s capital city in tip top shape, while lacking the resources necessary to keep up with growing demand. The city must increase funding for code enforcement and maintenance of city properties. This will allow the administration to more quickly and effectively respond to complaints about unkempt properties. By investing in city services and participatory budgeting that includes a diverse set of community voices, the whole community can help the administration address the appearance of city properties and create a more attractive and livable city for all residents. Creating a participatory budgeting process that allows residents to have a say in how city funds are spent, could help the community allocate a greater percentage of the budget to street, parks, and public facilities.
Katherine T. Rivera krivera4district1. com
Brian Patrick Gutierrez brian4santafenm. com
Alma Castro almagcastro.com
REGULAR LOCAL ELECTION VOTER GUIDE | OCTOBER 2023