The Maine Campus huddled in the cold as the last ballots were submitted at 8 p.m. The successful day in the Collins Center for the Arts (CCA) showed a high voter turnout regardless of the wind, rain and biting cold snaps. Volunteer and third-year environmental science student Gordan Young told Maine Campus that he personally “signed at least 200 registrations”. While we will wait until tomorrow for the Orono voter headcount, Associate Professor Dr. Robert Glover had a positive perspective.
“Tonight has been steady and an unusually high turnout for a year in which we’re not voting for governor or president,” said Glover.
Questions 1 and 2 on the ballot have been debated on campus, adding to the steady stream of community members going to the polls. As Question 1 influences absentee voting, students have had strong opinions about its passing.
Voting with the sun down and the polls dimming, political science and journalism major Elena Dana explained why she voted no on 1.
“It would prohibit tribal IDs [from] being able to be used to vote. And I know a lot of people don’t have other IDs to use, so it really didn’t feel fair to me,” said Dana.
When asked what issue was most important on the ballot this year, overwhelmingly the answer was Question 1. Just as in our report from early this morning, students and the community alike felt strongly about absentee voting.
“I think any threat to voting rights is a threat to our democracy,” said a microbiology major, Abigail Bergmark.
Bergmark was among the last people to vote in the CCA tonight. Accompanied by her friends, voting for Maine politics was a social activity.
“I think they [Questions 1 and 2] were both very important. I think Question 1 was really important. Just like Abigail said… If you’re not able to get to the polls, if you’re disabled, you should always have the option to do mail-in ballots… And then I think obviously Question 2, is very important as well, especially [after] what happened in Lewiston. I think you know, having the ability for family members to more quickly go to a judge and be able to help flag someone who might be potentially harmful to themselves to others is good,” said first-year wildlife ecology major Owen Bean.
The last votes are counted with the final voter, 19-year-old finance major Ben Gordan, voting yes and yes. This means that the time for debating, researching and dragging friends and family to the polls is over. Voting on campus, however, would not have been possible without the volunteers in the CCA. Lynn Caron, a 70-year-old poll worker, shared her thoughts about helping with Election Day.
“I really like doing voter registration because I think that’s the most important part to get right. To make sure all the data is correct,” said Caron.
Registration efforts had their set of difficulties, with many voters forgetting proof of address alongside their identification. However, that will be an issue for next year. The doors have closed, and the polls are counted.
Live reporting of Maine’s Question 1 and Question 2 is available thanks to AP reporting through the Washington Post. Question 1 has been confirmed “No” and Question 2 confirmed “Yes”. In one day there is now protected absentee voting and safer firearm laws.
As for the Town Council candidates, Andrea Hardison, Colleen Marzilli and John Quinn, they will be waiting longer to see what the voters have chosen. Two hours after the polls closed, there is no projection for this race.
