by Nicholas Janzen • October 30, 2024
Maine has a rich history of ballot initiatives, and, as a self-certified voting nerd, I always enjoy seeing who’s collecting ballot petition signatures after I vote on Election Day. But this year there’s a petition that I’m decidedly not excited to see–a voter suppression initiative that would undermine long standing hallmarks of Maine’s electoral system.
The so-called “Voter ID for ME” campaign, backed by hyper-conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo and a right-wing PAC, would severely limit Mainers’ ability to vote absentee, take control of elections away from local, nonpartisan officials, and create one of the strictest voter ID laws in the country.
Why now? Republicans have tried for years to pass voter suppression measures in Maine, so far without success. But this campaign is more organized and better funded. If it goes according to their plan, voters will decide whether to pass the measure in 2025, meaning it could be in place for the 2026 gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races if it passes. That’s their end goal: to install extremist candidates by gaming the system and making it harder for seniors, minorities, people with disabilities, low-income voters, and students to vote.
Of course, the campaign’s backers won’t own up to this scheme. Instead, they claim the measure is needed to decrease the risk of voter fraud and increase confidence in election results.
It’s a solution in search of a problem. In the United States, voter fraud occurs at a rate of 0.0003 to 0.0025% – you’re more likely to be struck by lightning. So too in Maine. You may recall in 2010 when over 200 UMaine students were doxxed and criminally investigated, only to find that no voter fraud was committed. Soon after, a Republican-appointed Elections Commission determined “there is little or no history in Maine of voter impersonation or identification fraud.”
Maine has a proud history of expanding voting rights, not limiting them. That’s why we allow same-day, automatic, and online voter registration. We don’t require an excuse for absentee voting, which can be done in person or by mail. And we never deprive voters of their franchise because of incarceration or a criminal conviction. When the newly-passed permanent absentee voting system becomes available to all Mainers in 2026, the state’s voting system will become even more accessible. As a result of these laws, Maine consistently has one of the highest voter turnout rates in the country.
The voter suppression bill would change all this. It would mandate that everyone show ID to vote in person or absentee (even by mail–what sense does that make?), and dramatically limit acceptable forms of ID. According to the Brennan Center, “as many as 11% of eligible voters do not have the kind of ID that is required by states with strict ID requirements, and that percentage is even higher among seniors, minorities, people with disabilities, low-income voters, and students.” We should be doing more to serve these folks, not making them the target of ineffective, unnecessary voter ID laws.
Walk to the polls, as I love to do, and forget your ID? Under the voter suppression bill, your vote won’t count unless you travel to the town clerk’s office and present your ID within 4 days of the election. Under our current system, if there’s a question about your identity or ballot, your vote is counted unless your vote is actually determined to be ineligible.
The voter suppression measure also turns absentee voting into a bureaucratic nightmare. It makes the application needlessly complicated and limits the ways you can request an absentee ballot. It would fully repeal ongoing absentee voting, a recent victory supported by MCV (ongoing absentee voting means that you only have to request an absentee ballot once and then you’ll continue to receive one before every election). The measure would also ban third-party returns of absentee ballots, making it especially difficult for rural voters, seniors, and those with limited mobility to get help returning their ballots. And the measure would prevent towns from having more than one drop box for absentee ballots and prohibit towns and the state from providing return postage for absentee ballots.
Voting should be simple, easy, and enjoyable, not complicated and intimidating. Unfortunately, supporters of this voter suppression measure are well on their way to making that a reality. During primary elections in June, they reported getting over 40,000 signatures, more than half of the about 67,000 signatures needed to qualify the measure for the ballot. If the voter suppression petition gets the signatures it needs this November (and elections are the best time to collect signatures), the Legislature will have an opportunity to enact the measure as written. If it doesn’t, the measure will go on the 2025 ballot.
MCV strongly urges you to decline to sign this petition. We work hard to ensure that all eligible Maine voters–no matter their race, creed, or ability–have easy, safe, and convenient access to the ballot. We hope you’ll support us in that endeavor.
