Sandoval County, New Mexico

Sandoval County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, the population was 131,561, making it the fourth-most populous county in New Mexico. The county seat is Bernalillo.

Sandoval County is part of the Albuquerque, NM Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,716 square miles (9,620 km²), of which 3,711 square miles (9,610 km²) is land and 5.3 square miles (14 km²) (0.1%) is water. The highest point in the county is the summit of Redondo Peak, at 11,254 feet (3,430 m).

A relatively small portion of the county exists as a geographically separate exclave between Los Alamos County and Santa Fe County. This came about when Los Alamos County was created; the land that became the exclave would have been part of Los Alamos but was excluded owing to its sacred status among the local Indians. Rather than be ceded to neighboring Santa Fe (or Los Alamos) it has remained part of Sandoval.