Fewer polling sites for 2008 elections

About 3,500 registered voters in Tucumcari will receive a new voter registration card and a notice about their new precinct and polling locations next week, said Quay County Clerk Ellen White. Some polling precincts have been consolidated and some polling sites have been closed or moved. Precincts in Quay County have been reduced from 16 to 12 to cut down the expenses of elections, White said. Sites that will not be used in the future are the Fairgrounds Exhibit Center, Immanuel Baptist Church, the Housing Authority Building and the Arch Hurley Conservancy District headquarters building, White said. Notices were expected to be mailed Friday. It's estimated that every two years the county will be saving about $8,000, White said. The Quay County Commission and the New Mexico Secretary of State approved the changes earlier this year. There are no precinct or polling site changes in Forrest, House, Logan, Nara Visa or San Jon, White said. In all, Quay County has 5,896 registered voters as of Nov. 1, 2007. June 3 is the primary election and the first election that voters will use their new polling sites. Party candidates running for the State Legislature, U.S. Congress and White House will be on the June 3 ballot. Local Quay County offices also will be on the ballot. Candidates running in the primary election must be registered voters and be a resident in the district they wish to represent, White said. Gov. Bill Richardson will sign a proclamation for the primary election on Jan. 28 and candidates who plan to run in the primary must have their voter registration in proper order to be eligible, White said. For more information call the Quay County Clerk at 461-0510.