Priority Legislation for 2019
Protecting Voters and Improving Elections
- LD 1477 RESOLUTION, Proposing an Amendment to the Constitution of Maine To Facilitate the Use of Ranked-choice Voting for Governor and Members of the Legislature. This bill would have expanded the implementation of ranked choice voting to the general elections for governor and the legislature. Defeated. Learn more about Ranked Choice Voting.
- LD 1626, An Act To Implement a Presidential Primary System in Maine. This bill restored the use of primary elections in the presidential nomination process, replacing the current system of municipal caucuses. Enacted into law. Learn more about our support for primary elections.
- LD 816 An Act To Implement the National Popular Vote for President of the United States. This bill would have guaranteed the Presidency to the candidate who receives the most popular votes in all 50 states (and the District of Columbia). The bill would have taken effect when when enacted by states possessing a majority of the electoral votes (270 out of 538). Defeated. Learn more about NPV.
- LD 1463 An Act To Create an Automatic Voter Registration System: Unless voters opt out, this bill will automatically register people to vote when they receive or renew their drivers' licenses at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and/or when they apply for or renew their eligibility for MaineCare. Enacted into law. Learn more about AVR.
- LD 619 RESOLUTION, Proposing an Amendment to the Constitution of Maine Regarding Early Voting. This bill would have given municipalities the option to implement true early voting for up to 30 days before an election, reducing wait times for voters and burdens on town clerks. Defeated. Learn more about Early Voting.
- LD 1026 An Act To Require Election Transparency. This bill advances both process audits and ballot audits in Maine elections, reducing the risk of an incorrect outcome, improving voter confidence in election protocols, and providing data to support iterative improvement in election administration. Enacted into law.
Fighting Big Money in Politics
- Full funding for Clean Elections and Ethics Commission: Ensure that budgetary appropriations are sufficient for full implementation of the Maine Clean Elections Act. Secured.
- LD 54, An Act To Limit the Influence of Lobbyists by Expanding the Prohibition on Accepting Political Contributions. This bill would prohibit lobbyists from contributing to candidates' political campaigns year-round. Passed to be enacted, not yet signed into law.
Learn more about our priorities from our Advocacy Training Webinar.
We're Making a Difference
You Can Make a Difference, Too
Learn more about our 2019 advocacy priorities and legislative agenda by reviewing our Policy Briefing Webinars.
To find out how to help on a particular bill, email us at action@lwvme.org
Submit testimony on one or more of these bills. Testimony is accepted up to the date of the work session. If you can't make it Augusta in person for the public hearing, the legislature is now offering a streamlined method for submitting written testimony online. Here is the link to the submission form
Testimony you submit using this form is automatically delivered electronically to the committee members, and if you submit your testimony before the end of the day of the public hearing, your testimony will be published online.
