Walt Borton, a NM registered Democrat since 1996, was raised in Nebraska and Ohio. He served in the US Navy from Oct 1969 – Oct 1973 and for the bulk of his enlistment worked for the Commander in Chief of the NATO Southern Region Headquarters, Naples, Italy. He studied journalism at Ohio University and has BS in Political Science from Boston University.

After careers in higher education administration and corporate management he became an independent consultant in corporate communications and public relations in 1991. He has managed several political campaigns, was a precinct chair in Santa Fe County, is Treasurer of the San Miguel County Democratic Party and ran for San Miguel County Commission in 2024.