The New Mexico Forward Party sued the state Tuesday, arguing New Mexico’s ballot access law punishes a newly qualified minor party by forcing its candidates to gather far more signatures than Democrats or Republicans ever have to touch.
Party Chairman Bob Perls filed the federal suit in Albuquerque after the Secretary of State’s office disqualified his own U.S. Senate campaign and former Albuquerque Public Schools Chief Financial Officer Michael Vigil’s run for state auditor two weeks earlier, both for insufficient signatures. Since the party only gained official minor party status earlier this year and still has a small registered voter base, its statewide candidates were required to gather 7,100 signatures, according to the lawsuit — more than the 2,500 required of major party candidates, though still short of the 14,200 threshold set for independent candidates.
Perls called the law unconstitutional, arguing that once the Secretary of State certifies a party as qualified, its nominees should have the right to appear on the general election ballot without clearing a separate signature threshold. He said in a press release he spent a decade pushing the Legislature to fix what he called discriminatory and unfair ballot access laws while serving as president of New Mexico Open Elections, work that never advanced out of committee. Perls said he plans to work with lawmakers from both parties during the 2027 legislative session to reduce and equalize signature requirements across the board. The lawsuit also challenges a requirement that candidates register with the party by May 8, five days before the Secretary of State certified the Forward Party as qualified on May 14.
The lawsuit asks a judge to place several of the disqualified Forward Party candidates on the November ballot. The party filed signatures in June for five candidates: Perls for U.S. Senate, Vigil for state auditor, and candidates for the Public Education Commission and county magistrate judgeships. Results were mixed at the county level — Dennis Dinge qualified for Public Education Commission District 3 through the Bernalillo County Clerk, and Harry Montoya qualified for magistrate court through the Santa Fe County Clerk, while Fran Kava was not qualified to run for Luna County Magistrate Court.
Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang visited Santa Fe in April to announce the Forward Party’s push for minor party status in New Mexico. The national party, which has fielded candidates regardless of their prior Democratic or Republican affiliation, lists treating people with dignity and acting with integrity among its core values. New Mexico granted the party official minor-party status in May.