RCV Maine Launches People's Veto to Restore Ranked Choice Voting

image
Created: 27 Oct, 2017
Updated: 17 Oct, 2022
2 min read

AUGUSTA, MAINE -- Four days after the Maine Legislature voted to thwart the will of the voters by delaying and repealing the voter-approved Ranked Choice Voting law, the Committee for Ranked Choice Voting (RCV Maine) submitted an application to the secretary of state to launch a People's Veto referendum to restore the election reform.

Maine’s Constitution gives the people the right to reverse decisions of the Legislature through the power of the People's Veto.

388,273 Maine citizens voted to take back their democracy last November when they voted to adopt Ranked Choice Voting by the second-largest referendum vote of the people in Maine's history.

Citizens will have 90 days to collect 61,123 valid signatures to force a People’s Veto. If successful, the People's Veto will freeze Maine's Ranked Choice Voting law in place and require its implementation for the June 2018 primary election for state and federal offices.

"Voters want Ranked Choice Voting implemented now, starting with the June 2018 election, because we want more voice and more choice in our democracy," said former State Senator Dick Woodbury, who was the lead signer on the People's Veto application and will continue to chair the Committee.

Thousands of Maine people have volunteered countless hours over many years to give voters the freedom to vote for the candidate they like best without worrying that they will help elect the candidate they like least.

“Ranked Choice Voting gives power to the people,” added Cushing Samp, a volunteer with the Committee for Ranked Choice Voting. “I’m going to knock on the door of every person I know in my community and ask them to sign the People’s Veto petition because our democracy belongs to the people and Maine’s Constitution gives us the final say.”

The Committee is hopeful that Secretary of State Matt Dunlap will approve the petition without delay. More than 300 volunteers have already signed up to collect signatures on Election Day.

Photo Credit: vepar5 / shutterstock.com

IVP Donate

Latest articles

Grey ballot box with a white ballot going into it and the New Mexico flag in the background.
Opening the Door: How New Mexico Reformed Its Primary Elections and What Others Can Learn
More than 330,000 independent voters will have access to state-administered primary elections in future New Mexico elections after the legislature passed SB 16 in March to end the state’s use of closed primaries....
29 May, 2025
-
5 min read
Dean Phillips
Dean Phillips Breaks Ranks: A Firsthand Rejection of the Duopoly That Controls American Democracy
In the shadow of a damning new campaign exposé, the only elected Democrat to challenge President Biden in 2024 speaks out about what really happened and what must change....
29 May, 2025
-
5 min read
Gavel on judge's desk.
Lawsuit Challenges Independent Voter Suppression under Closed Primaries in Maryland
A new lawsuit filed Wednesday by the Open Primaries Education Fund along with the law firm, Angor, Rapaport, & Skainy (DATRS), asserts that Maryland is violating its own constitution and the voting rights of nearly 1 million independent voters in the state by denying them access to taxpayer-funded primary elections....
28 May, 2025
-
3 min read