Election Day is Nov. 7, and there are plenty of items for residents to vote on. Biddeford voters will choose a new mayor and elect the City Council and School Committee. Polls will be open until 8:00 p.m. on Election Day, and voters can request and return an absentee ballot now. I’ve already voted, and it was easy to do thanks to an absentee ballot and the secure ballot drop box outside City Hall.
In addition to our city elections, eight referendum questions are on our statewide ballot. You’ve probably heard plenty about Question 3, and if you are like me, you’re tired of all of the communications coming from both sides! I want to discuss Questions 5 through 8, which are state constitutional amendments.
These four amendments were placed on the ballot by the Legislature after they received the required two-thirds vote from both the House and Senate earlier this year. All four received bipartisan support, and I voted in favor of each of them.
Question 5 addresses the time period in which Maine’s Secretary of State must review petitions for citizen initiatives and people’s vetoes. Under existing language in the Maine Constitution, the office faced a huge crunch when a significant number of petitions were filed close to the general election, which that office administers. I heard many stories of workers having to put in overtime hours, temporary workers needing to be hired and the office experiencing high turnover due to the stress. A “yes” vote on this question would give that office more flexibility while still ensuring that citizen petitions are reviewed in a timely manner. I voted for this because it would make life a bit easier on staff and save taxpayer money by reducing the need for overtime and temporary hires.
Question 6 addresses a strange omission in the Maine Constitution: three provisions which are officially part of the Constitution but are not allowed to be printed. One of these provisions includes the treaty obligations with the Wabanaki Tribes that Maine inherited when we became a state. These provisions remain in effect, but by not being printed, they are easier to ignore. I voted in favor of this because it makes sense that the entire Constitution of our state be printed in full.
Questions 7 and 8 make needed corrections to the Maine Constitution. By “needed,” I mean that they remove provisions that were struck down in federal court. Because of these federal rulings, Maine is prohibited from enforcing them, and we simply must remove them in order to remain in compliance with the United States Constitution.
Question 7 removes the provision of the Maine Constitution requiring individuals who circulate referendum petitions to be Maine residents. Maine was sued when it attempted to enforce this provision a few years ago, and the state lost. In practice, regardless of how one feels about any particular referendum, it’s a provision that didn’t make sense.
Finally, passage of Question 8 would correct a longstanding wrong. In 2001, a federal court ruling struck down a state constitutional provision which prohibited persons under guardianship due to mental illness from voting. Because of the ruling, this provision has not been enforced since, and people under such guardianships have had the right to vote in Maine for 22 years. It makes no sense for our state Constitution to contain an inoperative provision. I’ve seen some communications from ideologically motivated groups who support voter suppression muddying the waters on this issue. Don’t listen to them. The constitutional right to vote is sacred and available to all U.S. citizens in Maine who are 18 or older. Period.
As always, please feel free to contact me at marc.malon@legislature.maine.gov or call my office at 287-1430 with any concerns you have on this or any issue.
Rep. Marc Malon is serving his first term in the Maine House, representing a portion of Biddeford. He serves as a member of the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee and the Labor and Housing Committee.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
