50-State Strategy: Maine

Power-Building Strategy: Pass the National Popular Vote Compact.

Three times in American history has a Presidential candidate been elected without winning the popular vote. Each time it has divided the nation and resulted in a dangerous policy outcome — the end of Reconstruction, the unwinding of the Kyoto Protocol and the launch of the Iraq War, and the dangerous and criminal presidency of Donald Trump.

In the wake of the 2020 election, we missed a chance at a meaningful state legislative strategy to get the National Popular Vote Compact passed in enough states to ensure the popular vote winner becomes president in future elections starting in 2024. Moving forward, it is imperative that we pass the Compact in states where Democrats do have power and lay the groundwork for passage in other states with long-term power building strategies.

Maine is one of three Democratic trifecta states that have not passed the National Popular Vote (the other two are Nevada and Virginia). A trifecta is where one party controls both chambers of the legislature and the governorship.

The National Popular Vote, Inc. (NPV) has a long history on the attempts to pass NPV legislation in Maine. The NPV most recently came close to passage in 2019, after Democrats flipped the governorship and the State Senate blue (the State House remained in Democratic control).

In the 2019 legislative session, the State Senate passed the NPV, and after several votes, the State House defeated it. In the final vote in the State House, 20 Democrats joined with Republicans to defeat the bill.

As we outline in the Blue States section of the 2040 Project, we believe it is incumbent on Democratic states to be a model for democracy. Taking up this mantle has only become more urgent as Republicans look to turn back the clock on voting rights and democracy reform in the states where they have trifectas.

How you can advance a 50-state strategy in Maine:

• Support organizations like the National Popular Vote who are leading the advocacy effort to get the Compact passed in as many states as possible, like Maine.
• If you live in Maine, use the NPV’s resources to contact your legislator or write a letter to the editor to support the NPV. Attend an upcoming training sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Maine to learn how you can be an advocate for the NPV.