Maine cities and towns — but not all of them — have already begun voting in the 2024 elections, with some municipalities opening elections for in-person absentee ballots as early as August.
According to a list from the Maine Secretary of State’s office, as well as emails obtained by the Maine Wire, the process for beginning voting in Maine’s various cities and towns has begun on a rolling, supposedly random basis.
Under Maine law, in-person absentee voting begins on Oct. 7, and state law requires that election clerks have ballots in hand for 30 days prior to Election Day.
[RELATED: Mills, Bellows Cozy with Progressive Group ‘Studying’ Noncitizen Voting in Maine…]
However, according to Deputy Secretary of State Emily Cook, clerks are allowed to distribute ballots earlier if they please.
That means some Maine municipalities will have longer time windows to vote than others, depending on when the Secretary of State delivers ballots to the election clerk.
Secretary of State records show that 104 municipalities in Maine had already accepted in-person absentee ballots, with one town—Bowdoinham—even accepting a ballot on Aug. 5.
Although Cook and the Secretary of State’s office have been clear that voting must begin by Oct. 7, the date when voting can begin is nebulous and depends largely on when ballots are printed and in what order they’re mailed to Maine cities and towns.
It’s not clear who gets to determine which towns receive ballots first and how they make that determination.
Deputy Secretary of State Cook herself seemed confused as to whether voting had already begun in several Maine municipalities.
[RELATED: Bellows Hides From Maine Wire After SCOTUS Nukes Her Bid to Rig Maine’s Election: VIDEO…]
In a Sept. 26 email, Cook said, “I’m not aware of any municipalities distributing ballots, but they may be.”
According to Secretary of State records, 21 Maine towns were already accepting cast in-person absentee ballots when Cook wrote that email.
Confusion over when voting can officially start is further fueled by the lack of information on the topic available on government websites.
Maine’s Secretary of State website does not publish a list of dates when cities and towns officially start distributing and accepting in-person absentee ballots.
Democracy Works, the left-wing 501(c)3 nonprofit that has partnered with Google and various states to provide election information, states only that starting times vary by municipality.
Many municipal websites do not have clear information — or any information — concerning the earliest date when residents are allowed to begin casting votes.
Cook, in another email obtained by the Maine Wire, said that in-person absentee ballots are distributed “on a rolling basis on a schedule designed to ensure everyone receives ballots in time, taking into account delivery times and schedules and town office hours, just as this office has always done.”
The confusion and lack of statutory guidance as to the earliest date when towns can officially begin collecting votes has created, whether intentionally or not, an opening for partisan manipulation of the voting process.
A Secretary of State could, for example, distribute ballots early to towns with higher populations of registered Democrats and thereby give Democratic voters a longer window in which to cast ballots.
So far, the ad hoc, early, and unpublicized rollout of voting start dates has seen more registered Democrats voting than Republicans or unaffiliated voters.
[RELATED: Most Mainers Say Bellows’ Blocked Trump for Partisan Reasons: UNH Poll…]
According to the Secretary of State records, 586 registered Democrats had already submitted their votes as of Oct. 1, while just 329 Republicans and 260 unaffiliated voters had submitted their ballots.
According to the records, the following cities and towns are already accepting in-person absentee ballots:
Acton, Alfred, Andover, Arundel, Auburn, Augusta, Bar Harbor, Belgrade, Belmont, Berwick, Blue Hill, Boothbay, Boothbay Harbor, Bowdoin, Bowdoinham, Bristol, Bucksport, Buxton, Camden, Canaan, Carmel, Casco, Chelsea, Clinton, Corinna, Cornville, Cumberland, Cushing, Deer Isle, Dover-Foxcroft, Durham, Easton, Eddington, Eliot, Ellsworth, Enfield, Fairfield, Falmouth, Farmingdale, Farmington, Fort Fairfield, Gorham, Gray, Greene, Hartland, Holden, Howland, Jay, Kennebunkport, Lamoine, Leeds, Lincolnville, Litchfield, Madawaska Lake, Manchester, Milford, Millinocket, Minot, Monmouth, Morrill, Mount Desert, New Gloucester, New Sharon, Newburgh, Newport, North Berwick, Old Orchard Beach, Old Town, Orland, Oxford, Palermo, Palmyra, Paris, Parsonsfield, Pittston, Readfield, Richmond, Rockland, Saint George, Sanford, Scarborough, Sedgwick, Shapleigh, South Berwick, South Portland, Southwest Harbor, Standish, Steuben, Stockton Springs, Sumner, Tremont, Turner, Vassalboro, Verona Island, Waldoboro, Warren, Waterford, Waterville, West Gardiner, Whitefield, Windsor, Woolwich, and York.
For more information about voting in Maine, you can visit the Maine page of “Democracy Works“.
Unregistered voters may register online here.
To find out if your municipality has begun accepting in-person absentee ballots, the best source of information will be your city or town’s website, or the local clerk’s office.
[COMMENTARY: Shenna Bellows Is Not a Victim…]
I was STUNNED to see that the ballot for president is a Ranked Choice form .
WTF is this ?
The democrats have got their five minimum candidate names on the ballot . Three of these people have no statistical chance what so ever of winning . That’s why they are on the ballot in the first place .
They are back door democrat funded stooges needed only to dilute the first vote and start the ranking scam .
HOW ON EARTH did this ranked choice voting scheme get voted in ?
Maine has gotten really screwed up .
The CHEATING has started.
Lawrence Pouli
“I was STUNNED to see that the ballot for president is a Ranked Choice form .”
Wait just a G.D. Minute. We were told that stench (rank) choice voting would NOT be used for national elections. WHAT HAPPENED? Did that commie, Can’t Understand Normal Thinking Bellows overstep and change the rules yet again?
Here’s a nice picture of Ren and Stimpy at day camp in Augusta .
Birds of a feather flock together .
They are smiling because they made a new state flag in arts and crafts .
Now they’ll jam it down our throats with votes from their little socialist buddies .
I can’t wait until these two leave office .
Tweddle dumb and Tweddle dumber.
589 have voted either republican or democrat..260 unaffiliated..wouldnt they crap their skivvies if all those unaffiliated voted R. They’re trying to push the idea that the dems are way ahead. Perfect reason for common sense people to vote R
Fur traders.
We’re gonna vote out all these drug dealing republicans every election. All of you shits on here saying it’s common sense to vote ‘R’ are obviously meth and fenty users/sellers/traffickers. Every one of you should be pulled out of your homes and made to live on a work farm in some other State. You’re all goddamm PIGS. You make me SICK. Real Mainers would never allow drug-pushing FILTH to drive unopposed around every town. I think most of you aren’t even actually from Maine, escapees from massachusetts is more like it – used to avoiding instead of reporting, or heaven forbid, actually take matters into your own hands and start shooting these drug dealers. A real Mainer would buy a narcotics scanner and go out and do some good. What’s your excuse for not having purchased narcotics scanners already? Real Mainers would never sit there in front of the boob tube and ignore criminals who are looking to sell poison to your family and neighbors. I think most of you are impostors who aren’t who you say you are, and clearly are people who DO NOT BELONG in this State. We’re going to vote Democrat and we’re going to keep voting Democrat because only Democrats will be the ones to deploy military forces to round up all of you human bags of shit and transport you THE HELL OUT OF HERE
OMG. I’m not sure what the drug use issue has to do with this article. If you can read “Trans Man” grow up, and take a look where the fentanyl and meth is coming from. I.E. the southern “open” border. The border your retard president opened for every criminal, Chinese spy, terrorist and Central American drug cartel to come through. Your president and vice president have openly let in thousands of admitted criminals. Rapist, murderers, pedophiles. Instead of grow up, check in to somewhere that can get you help. BTW there are only two genders. Not 666….the mark of your god. Good luck to you.
Sorry Trans Man, but you don’t exist! There are only 2 genders, and they cant be changed! You are free to enjoy your mental illness, just don’t expect others to engage in your delusion.
The Ranked Choice Format is BULLSHIT .
How on God’s earth did we get that democrat scheme ?
The presidential portion is ( as predicted ) loaded with THREE candidates that have NO chance whatsoever of winning . The “ libertarian “ I had never even heard of . All three of these probably backdoor funded by the democrats in order to dilute the “ first / real “ ballot .
Like Joe Scarborough said in as many words :
“ If you voted for ranked choice voting then FUCK YOU , “
Like the Democrats say “vote early and vote often”.