Bernalillo County and Albuquerque voters made it clear last night that they want nothing to do with governing each other. The proposed unification of the two government entities "went down in flames" as predicted by pollster Brian Sanderoff and myself earlier in the week on "New Mexico Politics With Joe Monahan." 66,794 votes were cast AGAINST the measure with 41,863 FOR. That's 62% against and 38% for, a margin of 24%! Total votes cast were 107,982, representing a turnout among registered voters of 37.95%, above expectations, but not markedly so.

There was not much crying in the beer by proponents of unification very late Tuesday when the results were announced. No one really mounted a campaign in favor of the measure, even the commission that wrote the proposal. This unification defeat goes into the history books along with several others over the last 50 years. It seems each generation takes a stab at it and each says no thanks. It goes without saying that valley opposition was off the charts and the measure appeared to have failed in every section of the city as well. However, that is an educated guess and specific results will not be available by county commission or city council district. That info from a post-midnight interview with County Elections Bureau Director Jaime Diaz. Clerk Mary Herrera was not instructed to provide for such a breakdown. Actually, we were lucky to get any vote count as a stunning 57,000 votes were returned to the clerk marked undeliverable. It was the first mail-in election in Bernalillo County history. (The city did one in 1999) It may be the last.

Opponents like Sheriff White told me they saw this one coming, but still were not jumping for joy this morning because they face the prospect of fighting the measure yet again. The constitutional amendment that made possible Tuesday's vote states that voters must face it again within one year upon rejection. The only way we know how to change a constitutional amendment is with another one. And how can that be done in time to avoid the one year deadline for having the second election?

Resentment will be high toward another election because of the historic landslide vote against unification last night. A mail-in ballot with an increased voter turnout was the proponents best chance. Seems like an opportunity for a young, hot shot lawyer to come up with a way to stop that second vote through the courts. If he or she did, they just might find themselves with a political future--either in the city or the county.