Today, Maine voters gathered at the Collins Center for the Arts (CCA) to vote on two referendum questions. This was a long-awaited election that has received plenty of fanfare in recent months due to the controversial nature of the questions.
As reported by The Maine Campus, Question 1 (Q1) would limit absentee voting, strengthen voter ID and have a large impact on seniors, college students, first-time voters and people with disabilities. According to the Maine Morning Star, this question was introduced by Republican state leaders in an effort to make elections more secure.
The Maine Campus also reported on Question 2 (Q2), which would limit the access to firearms of individuals deemed an imminent threat to themselves or others. This question was partially inspired by the mass shooting in Lewiston that took place two years ago.
Both questions have faced significant amounts of support and backlash, with citizens commonly divided on a partisan basis. Those who lean to the right tend to be in favor of Question 1 but not 2, with those who lean to the left experiencing the reverse.
The Maine Campus spoke with Mark Brewer, a Political Science professor and Department Chair, about his predictions for the outcome of this election. He would like to preface his statement by saying that predictions are not his area of expertise.
“I think Question 1 will fail because Mainers are generally very supportive of absentee voting. If it was just a voter ID question, the outcome would likely be different,” said Brewer.
As of October 2024, about a quarter of Maine voters, or approximately 250,000 people, had requested absentee ballots, according to the Maine Public. Absentee ballots were requested almost equally by both registered Republicans and Democrats.
“Question 2 is harder to predict. I think it will be close, but my guess is that it fails,” said Brewer.
State leaders such as Gov. Janet Mills have publicly opposed Question 2, citing concerns over the clarity of the process it would impose upon being passed, and undermining the authority of law enforcement.
The Maine Campus also spoke with Robert Glover, Associate Professor of Political Science. Glover suggested that there might not be enough information available to make an accurate prediction of the election outcome.
“We don’t have a ton of polling available on this and what we do have suggests both Q1 and Q2 are going to be very close. This means whether they pass or not is a function of turnout,” said Glover. He added, “So I hope everyone will turn out and vote on this election day as these are important questions that have real impacts, particularly for students.”
If you would like to learn more about the questions that were on the ballot today, the Maine Citizen’s Guide to the Referendum Election is available here.
