Tag: maine

Showing an independent streak in keeping with Maine’s political tradition, Sen. Rick Bennett (R–Oxford) broke ranks with his party this week to join 91 Democrats in supporting a bill that would finally fulfill the will of Maine voters: implementing ranked choice voting (RCV) in all state general ele...

On May 20, the Maine House of Representatives voted 76–71 to withdraw the state from the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC), reversing course just over a year after Maine became the 17th jurisdiction to join the agreement....

In a significant early endorsement in Maine’s 2026 governor’s race, US Senator Bernie Sanders has thrown his support behind Troy Jackson, the former Maine Senate President and longtime champion of working-class issues and political reform....

A legal showdown over the future of campaign finance laws in Maine — and potentially nationwide — begins May 22 as a federal judge is set to hear oral arguments over a voter-approved cap on contributions to super PACs at a time when these groups continue to shatter records in election spending....

Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME-2), one of the most independent voices in Congress, will face a new challenger in 2026: former Maine Governor Paul LePage. Once again conducted under Maine’s ranked choice voting (RCV) system, the race is expected to draw national attention in one of the country’s most compet...

On Monday, Maine's Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee voted 3-7 against restoring batch elimination to the ranked choice voting (RCV) system through LD 656 (HP 424), the title of which claims it will save taxpayers money, but the secretary of state says is unnecessary. ...

Editor's Note: This op-ed originally published in the Portland Press Herald as a letter to the editor and was submitted to be republished on IVN with permission from the author. Photo by Pepi Stojanovski on Unsplash. Last Sunday’s Maine Sunday Telegram in the Portland Press Herald contained an op-ed decrying the statute recently adopted by referendum that prohibits a person from contributing more than $5,000 in any year to any single political action committee in the state of Maine. Contrary t...

Maine law requires the use of ranked choice voting in presidential elections if there are more than two candidates on the ballot -- something that is close to happening in 2024....

Next year, Maine will hold its first open primary election. Every Maine voter — including the 32 percent registered as unaffiliated — will be able to vote. It’s a critical step forward.  ...

A third of Maine’s electorate will have an opportunity for meaningful participation in taxpayer-funded elections. Governor Janet Mills allowed a bill to go into law Monday that creates a semi-open primary system that gives independent voters a say in the state's primaries. “When we encourage and allow more voters to participate in our elections, we all benefit,” said state Senator Chloe Maxmin (D-Lincoln), who sponsored the legislation. “Voters have been asking for semi-open primaries for years...

Maine has long been at the forefront of political innovation, from the way its ballots are designed, to its clean election funds program, to same-day voter registration and no-excuse absentee voting, to implementing ranked choice voting. Yet, it bolstered its reputation even more when it passed semi-open primary reform in 2021. Open Primaries, which partnered with Open Primaries Maine to move the needle on primary reform in the state, released a new report on the multi-year process that culmina...

In a bipartisan vote, the Maine Legislature passed a bill Wednesday that implements a semi-open primary system, which will allow voters registered independent (32% of the registered electorate) to choose between a Republican or a Democratic primary ballot in future elections. “I am thrilled that my colleagues on both sides of the aisle joined me in supporting semi-open primaries,” said bill sponsor Senator Chloe Maxmin (D-Lincoln). “Enacting this common sense reform will align our democratic sy...