N.M. Stat. § 31-13-1 (2026)

public trust.
     A person who has been convicted of a felony shall not be permitted to hold an office
of public trust for the state, a county, a municipality or a district, unless the person has
presented the governor with a certificate verifying the completion of the sentence and
was granted a pardon or a certificate by the governor restoring the person's full rights of
citizenship.

History: 1953 Comp., § 40A-29-14, enacted by Laws 1963, ch. 303, § 29-14; and
recompiled as 1953 Comp., § 40A-29-38, by Laws 1977, ch. 216, § 16; 2001, ch. 46, §
2; 2005, ch. 116, § 2; 2023, ch. 84, § 23.

                                     ANNOTATIONS
Recompilations. — Laws 1977, ch. 216, § 16 recompiled 40A-29-14, 1953 Comp., as
40A-29-38, 1953 Comp. effective July 1, 1979.

Cross references. — For persons convicted of a felonious or infamous crime as not
being qualified voters, see N.M. Const., art. VII, § 1 and 1-4-24 NMSA 1978.

For qualification of voters, see N.M. Const., art VII, § 1.

For governor's power to pardon, see N.M. Const., art V, § 6.

For registration following conviction, see 1-4-27.1 NMSA 1978.

The 2023 amendment, effective July 1, 2023, removed provisions related to the
restoration of the right to register to vote after the completion of a sentence for a felony
conviction; in the section heading, deleted "citizenship" and added "right to hold office of
public trust"; and deleted former Subsections A through D.

The 2005 amendment, effective June 17, 2005, in Subsection B, provided that when a
person has completed the terms of a suspended or deferred sentence, the clerk of the
district court shall notify the secretary of state and the secretary of state shall notify all
county clerks that the person is eligible for registration; in Subsection C, provided that
upon the issuance of a certificate of completion of sentence, which shall state that the
person’s voting rights are restored, the corrections department shall inform the person
that the person is entitled to vote; and in Subsection D, provided that when the
corrections department issues a certificate of completion, the corrections department
shall notify the secretary of state, the secretary of state shall notify all county clerks that
the person is eligible for registration and county clerks shall accept the certificate of
completion as proof that the person is eligible for registration.

The 2001 amendment, effective July 1, 2001, substituted "Felony conviction" for "Effect
of criminal conviction upon civil rights; governor may pardon or grant" in the section
heading; rewrote Subsections A and B adding alternatives to the gubernatorial
restoration of voting rights following a felony conviction; and rewrote Subsection C to
relate only to the holding of public office after a felony conviction.

Governor's pardon removes only state, not federal, disabilities for convicted
felon. — A pardon by the governor only removes the disabilities previously imposed on
a convicted felon by this state, namely, the right to vote and to hold office, but does not
remove any disabilities imposed by federal statute on the convicted felon, for example,
the disability of not being allowed to receive a firearm involved in interstate commerce.
U.S. v. Larranaga, 614 F.2d 239 (10th Cir. 1980).

Eligibility for elective office. — A convicted felon who was elected to the position of
county commissioner became eligible to hold that office when, prior to taking the oath of
office, she applied for and received a certificate of restoration of full rights of citizenship
from the governor of New Mexico. Lopez v. Kase, 1999-NMSC-011, 126 N.M. 733, 975
P.2d 346.

Dual pathways to restoration of civil rights. — Section 31-13-1 NMSA 1978 provides
dual pathways to restoring civil rights. Subsection A provides for the restoration of civil
rights for convicted felons who receive deferred sentences and have no criminal
sentences to complete. Subsections C and E provide for the restoration of civil rights for
convicted felons who receive and complete criminal sentences. United States of
America v. Reese, 2014-NMSC-013.

Completion of deferred sentence. — Upon the completion of all conditions for a
deferred sentence and the resulting dismissal of all charges, a person’s civil rights,
including the right to vote, the right to hold public office, the right to serve on a jury, and
the right to possess firearms, are restored by operation of law without the necessity of a
pardon or certificate from the governor. United States of America v. Reese, 2014-
NMSC-013.

Where defendant pleaded no contest to one felony count of tampering with evidence;
the district court deferred sentencing and placed defendant on probation; defendant
completed the conditions of deferment and the district court dismissed the charge of
tampering with evidence; a decade later, defendant was indicted for violation of a
federal statute that prohibited felons from possessing firearms based on defendant’s
felony conviction for tampering with evidence; federal law excluded any conviction for
which a person had their civil rights restored; and the parties agreed that New Mexico
had restored defendant’s right to vote, to serve on a jury and to possess firearms, but
disagreed over whether New Mexico had restored defendant’s right to hold public office
because Subsection E, which addresses the right to hold public office, does not refer to
deferred sentences, upon the completion of defendant’s deferred sentence, all of
defendant’s civil rights were automatically restored, including the right to hold public
office. United States of America v. Reese, 2014-NMSC-013.

Definition of "pardon". — A "pardon" is a declaration on record by the chief magistrate
of a state or country that a person named is relieved from the legal consequences of a
specific crime, or an act of grace proceeding from the power entrusted with execution of
laws, which exempt the individual on whom it is bestowed from the punishment the law
inflicts for a crime he has committed. 1959 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 59-176.

Certificate of pardon operates to cover all convictions and sentences. 1970 Op.
Att'y Gen. No. 70-85.

Full pardon absolves one from all legal consequences of crime. — It was formerly
doubted whether a pardon could do more than take away the punishment, leaving the
crime and its disabling consequences unremoved, but, with certain exceptions
hereinafter noted, it is now the accepted general doctrine that a full pardon absolves
one from all legal consequences of his crime. If granted before conviction, it prevents
any of the penalties and disabilities consequent upon conviction from attaching; if
granted after conviction it removes the penalties and disabilities which ordinarily follow
from conviction, and, generally speaking, restores the offender to all his civil rights.
1959 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 59-176.

Restoration of citizenship rights. — A full pardon automatically restores such
citizenship rights as were lost by the conviction. 1959 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 59-176.

But record not expunged. — There is no law in this state authorizing the expunging
from records the fact of a felony conviction for which pardoned. 1959 Op. Att'y Gen. No.
59-176.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 21A Am. Jur. 2d Criminal Law § 1311 et
seq.

Executive clemency to remove disqualification for office, resulting from conviction of
crime, as applicable in case of conviction in federal court or court of another state, 135
A.L.R. 1493.

Pardon as restoring license or other special privilege or office forfeited by conviction,
143 A.L.R. 172, 70 A.L.R.2d 268.

Offense under federal law or law of another state or country, conviction as vacating
accused's holding of state or local office or as ground for removal, 20 A.L.R.2d 732.

Propriety of conditioning probation on suspended sentence or defendant's refraining
from political activity, protest, or the like, 45 A.L.R.3d 1022.

Pardon as restoring public office on license or eligibility therefor, 58 A.L.R.3d 1191.

What constitutes conviction within statutory or constitutional provision making conviction
of crime ground of disqualification for, removal from, or vacancy in, public office, 10
A.L.R.5th 139.

State pardon as affecting "convicted" status of one accused of violations of Gun Control
Act of 1968 (18 USCS §§ 921 et seq.), 44 A.L.R. Fed. 692.

State restoration of federal felon's civil rights as nullification of conviction under 18
USCS § 921(a)(20) which defines conviction for purposes of penalizing possession of
weapon by convicted felon pursuant to 18 USCS § 922(g)(1), 117 A.L.R. Fed. 247.

18 C.J.S. Convicts § 3 et seq.