By KRWG News
New Mexico – New Mexicans will be able to keep their classic yellow license plate or have the option of a new turquoise plate next year.
Gov. Bill Richardson's office announced Friday that more than three-fourths of the nearly 9,000 people who voted in an online poll wanted the yellow plate to remain available.
The retro-style turquoise plate commemorates the 100th anniversary of New Mexico statehood in 2012. It will be available as of January, and become the official state license plate along with the yellow.
The yellow plate has existed in various forms since 1980, and the governor said many New Mexicans have a nostalgic attachment to it.
The state Motor Vehicle Division will discontinue a plate that has been around since 1999 featuring a hot air balloon.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.