With 87% of the vote counted, approximately two-thirds of Maine voters rejected a Republican-backed ballot measure on Tuesday that would have imposed stricter requirements for absentee voting. The measure, known as Question 1, aimed to limit access to absentee ballots in a state where over 370,000 voters cast ballots in this manner last year. The outcome was seen as a victory for voting rights, following an organized campaign led by U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner, who mobilized his supporters to oppose the proposal.
Platner, an oyster farmer and harbormaster, is one of several Democrats running in the June primary to challenge long-time Republican Senator Susan Collins in the November general election. He was joined in his opposition by Governor Janet Mills, who is term-limited and also opposed Question 1.
In the lead-up to the election, Platner launched an animated advertisement and held a major rally in Portland to highlight the potential negative impacts of Question 1. If passed, the measure would have eliminated two days of absentee voting, prohibited requests for absentee ballots via phone or family members, ended ongoing absentee voter status for seniors and individuals with disabilities, banned prepaid postage on return envelopes, limited the number of drop boxes, and required voters to present specific forms of photo identification.
“This victory belongs to the thousands of volunteers, many of them with our campaign, who left it all on the field to save absentee voting in Maine,” Platner said on social media after the results were announced. He noted that the campaign conducted 2,400 canvass shifts and contacted 49,000 voters.
The League of Women Voters of Maine praised the outcome, calling it “a win for voting rights and for Maine voters.” Jen Lancaster, the group’s communications director, stated that Question 1 represented a “voter suppression bill” that would have created unnecessary barriers to voting. She emphasized the importance of protecting absentee voting, which is essential for many Mainers.
Governor Mills also welcomed the defeat of Question 1, stating that Maine voters had reaffirmed their commitment to free, fair, and secure elections. She highlighted the state’s high voter turnout, which she attributed in part to the availability of safe absentee voting. “Maine people tonight have said they want to keep it that way,” she said.
Mills, however, opposed another ballot measure, Question 2, which was approved by about two-thirds of voters. Known as the “red flag” gun law, the measure aims to enhance public safety by allowing authorities to temporarily remove firearms from individuals deemed a threat. The law passed following a 2023 mass shooting in Lewiston that left 18 people dead.
While Mills expressed hope that the law would improve public safety, she also indicated her administration would work closely with law enforcement to implement the new legislation alongside existing extreme risk protection laws.
Platner, a U.S. military veteran who has taught firearms courses, publicly supported Question 2 but did not actively campaign for or against it. Supporters of the law, including Nacole Palmer of the Maine Gun Safety Coalition, hailed the passage as a step toward safer communities. “Maine voters have taken the safety of our communities into our own hands by passing commonsense, responsible gun legislation that will save lives,” Palmer said. She added that the movement for responsible gun ownership has gained strength despite opposition from the gun lobby and its political allies.
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