Panel endorses bill giving Maine voters power to elect attorney general, other officers pressherald.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from pressherald.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Open primaries better for democracy
Letter
Share
On behalf of the National Election Reform Committee (associated with Independent Voting), I am writing this open letter to all of the great people of the state of Maine to support L.D. 1211, “An Act To Create An Open and Streamlined Primary.” This legislation was introduced by state Sen. Joe Baldacci, D-Bangor, on March 18.
L.D. 1211 would create an open non-partisan primary election system which would allow all voters to vote in a primary election, including Independents. This bill pertains to the election of all state and national offices. Right now, Maine has a closed primary election system where it is open only to Democrats and Republicans. This is not a democratic system. I encourage all Maine voters to contact their respective representatives in the Maine Legislature and ask them to vote for L.D. 1211.
Maine’s major police oversight bill stalls as sheriffs roll back support Contributed • April 28, 2021
By Erin Rhoda, Bangor Daily News Staff
After backing legislation that would bring more oversight to elected county sheriffs, the Maine Sheriffs’ Association withdrew its support this week, potentially torpedoing the bill’s chances of being passed by the full Maine Legislature and showing the difficulty of bringing legislative changes even amid widespread calls for more police accountability.
Upon learning that the sheriffs’ association was opposing LD 375, which would create a process for sheriffs to be placed on administrative leave when they are suspected of unethical or criminal behavior, the Legislature’s state and local government committee voted 10-2, with one lawmaker absent, to recommend that the bill ought not to pass.
Bills to constrain governor’s executive powers rejected on party-line votes
The proposals to require more legislative oversight of civil state of emergency declarations were voted down by majority Democrats on the State and Local Government Committee.
Share
The Legislature’s State and Local Government Committee rejected in a series of party-line votes Monday more than a dozen bills seeking to constrain Gov. Janet Mills’ executive authority during a civil state of emergency.
The bills are a response to complaints that ongoing COVID-19 restrictions ordered by the Democratic governor under a public health emergency are damaging livelihoods and violating citizens’ rights.
Read Article
The Legislature’s State and Local Government Committee rejected more than a dozen bills seeking to constrain Gov. Janet Mills’ executive authority during a civil state of emergency in a series of party-line votes Monday.
The bills are a response to conservative complaints that ongoing COVID-19 restrictions ordered by the Democratic governor under a public health emergency are damaging livelihoods and violating citizens’ rights.
But the Legislature’s majority Democrats have largely supported the Mills administration’s response to the pandemic while praising the governor for saving lives and saving the state’s economy.
The bills Monday were all sponsored by Republicans, and voted ought not to pass by majority Democrats on the committee during more than two hours of remote voting in a work session.