Republican-backed ballot initiative rejected in Maine

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine voters on Tuesday rejected a series of Republican-backed changes to the state’s voting procedures that have been energizing conservatives across the country.

The Maine initiative focused on changes to voter ID and absentee voting and was one of two GOP-led measures (the other in Texas) that were being considered by voters and that advocates said would safeguard elections. Maine’s proposal would have implemented a photo ID requirement for voters, limited the use of drop boxes to return completed ballots and made changes to the state’s absentee voting system.

Meanwhile, voters in Texas, where Republicans control the government, approved a proposal to amend the state constitution to add “persons who are not citizens of the United States” to the list of those excluded from participating in elections.

Opponents of the measures had argued that they were aimed at making voting more difficult or addressing issues that are not major issues.

Voters decided on the measures at a time when President Donald Trump and national Republicans have pushed for new voting restrictions. Both initiatives are part of a nationwide Republican effort to enact strict voter ID laws and highlight the extremely rare problem of noncitizen voting.

National Democrats heralded the defeat of the Maine proposal as a victory for voting rights.

“Question 1 would have ended absentee voting as we know it, further diluting the voting rights of people with disabilities, seniors, and working Maine people who cannot take the day off from work to vote,” said Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin.

Proponents of Maine’s voting proposal had accused Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, a Democrat, of wording the ballot question in a deliberately confusing way. They took that argument to the state’s highest court and lost in July. On Tuesday, the voter ID campaign said in a statement that Bellows “weaponized” the ballot question and that opponents of the initiative ran a fear-based campaign.

“The opposition claimed that Question 1 would eliminate absentee voting and focused their campaign on that fiction. Instead of honestly debating the merits of voter ID, they spread lies and fear, convincing voters to vote against their own interests,” the campaign said in a statement.

Maine Gov. Janet Mills was one of many Democrats in the state who spoke out against the voter ID initiative. He said he saw it less as an opportunity to prop up the election and more as an attack on the right to vote itself.

AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty, Fle

Maine’s proposal stated that it would also eliminate two days of absentee voting, prohibit absentee voting requests by phone or family members, and end current absentee voting status for seniors and people with disabilities, among other changes.

The initiative was considered as Maine investigates an allegation that dozens of unmarked ballots, intended to be used in this year’s election, were discovered inside a woman’s Amazon order. The secretary of state’s law enforcement division is investigating the discovery with the help of the FBI and other state authorities, Bellows said.

The Texas proposal came as Republicans in the state have also pushed for voters to submit proof-of-citizenship proposals. A Texas Senate bill on the issue failed to gain full legislative approval before lawmakers adjourned in June.

Republican state Rep. AJ Louderback, who pushed for the amendment, said he believes the Texas vote sends a clear message to America about the importance of ensuring only citizens vote.

“I hope it’s a very serious turning point in the direction this is going,” he said in a telephone interview. “Hopefully the rest of the nation will follow suit.”

Veronikah Warms, a voting rights policy attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project, said the amendment was a pretext to undermine confidence “in our democratic process” and to vilify immigrants.

Voters in Texas already must attest to being citizens when they register to vote. Fourteen other states have attempted similar citizenship voting initiatives in recent years, and all passed easily. More are expected next year.

Voting by noncitizens is already illegal and punishable by a felony and possible deportation. A handful of cities across the country allow noncitizens to vote in certain local elections.

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Hanna reported from Topeka, Kansas.