The BDN Editorial Board operates independently from the newsroom, and does not set policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com.
There are myriad reasons to vote in Tuesday’s election. Here’s a good one: Democracy isn’t a spectator sport. It requires participation from voters. You help decide who represents you in the state Legislature, Congress and the White House. You help decide if Maine borrows money for a variety of projects. You have a say in who sits on town councils and school boards.
If you did not vote already in Maine’s early voting process and you’re an eligible voter, you need to head to the polls on Tuesday. You can find your polling place and even see a sample ballot using the secretary of state’s voter information lookup service. If you haven’t returned your absentee ballot, be sure to get it to your town office by 8 p.m. on Tuesday.
If you’re not registered to vote yet, Maine allows you to register up to and on Election Day. You’ll need to provide proof of residency, so bring identification — a photo ID works but so does an official piece of mail like a utility bill that proves you live where you say you live — when you go to the polls.
Even if there is a problem with your registration, you still can vote under Maine’s challenged ballot law, so there’s no reason to leave a polling place without having your say. If you make a mistake on a ballot, you can take it to a volunteer at the polling place and ask for another.
If you have questions about voting and what’s on the ballot, the BDN’s voter guide likely has the answers.
Any election is an opportunity, if not responsibility, for people to get civically engaged. This election features several prominent choices that have statewide and even national implications.
Voters across the country will be choosing between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump, and three third-party candidates, for president.
Independent Angus King is running for a third term in the U.S. Senate. He is being challenged by Republican Demi Kouzounas, Democrat David Costello and independent Jason Cherry.
Voters in both of Maine’s congressional districts will select their representatives for the next two years. Second District voters have a choice between Democratic incumbent Rep. Jared Golden and Republican state Rep. Austin Theriault, with Diana Merenda of Surry running as a write-in candidate. In the 1st District, Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree is looking for a ninth term and being challenged by Republican Ron Russell and independent Ethan Alcorn.
Remember, these elections use ranked-choice voting. You can rank all the candidates in order of your preference or you can rank just one candidate as your first pick.
Voters across the state will also choose their representatives in the Maine House and Senate for the next two years, which collectively will also decide which party controls each of these bodies in the Maine Legislature. Who Maine sends to Congress could have a similar impact in determining the balance of power in Washington for the next two years.
There are five referendums on the statewide ballot. Three of them are bond issues. Question 1 seeks to limit campaign contributions to super PACS, but will most likely result in lawsuits. Question 5 proposes a new state flag, which would echo a design from Maine’s early history as a state.
Depending where you live, there may be a long list of local offices and referenda on the ballot as well. Here in Bangor, for example, four candidates are vying for three seats on the City Council and three people are competing for two seats on the Bangor School Committee.
Hopefully all eligible voters in Maine can find a reason to cast a ballot. Approximately 78 percent of Maine’s eligible voters cast their ballots in the 2020 election, putting us near the top of the voter participation leaderboard nationally.
We’d also like to make a plea about what not to do this election season: Don’t harass or threaten election workers. The alarming and increasing way that these officials and volunteers, who are vital cogs in the wheel of democracy, have been targeted is simply unacceptable. These are our neighbors. They are local employees and volunteers who make Maine elections possible. They deserve our praise, not our derision.
Go vote!