Maine voters will have the chance to decide on proposals including a consumer-owned electric utility, a ban on foreign campaign contributions, and various other citizen initiatives and amendments to the Maine Constitution in the upcoming referendum election.
While there won’t be any statewide candidates on the ballot, voters will weigh in on eight statewide ballot measures, an unusually large number. Harpswell residents may vote in person from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 7, at Harpswell Community School, 308 Harpswell Islands Road, Harpswell.
Harpswell voters can request an absentee ballot online via the Maine secretary of state’s ballot request page, over the phone by calling the Town Clerk’s Office at 207-833-5822, or by visiting the Harpswell Town Office, 263 Mountain Road.
The deadline to request an absentee ballot is Thursday, Nov. 2, when the Clerk’s Office will stay open until 7 p.m. so residents can request an absentee ballot or register to vote. Completed absentee ballots can be delivered to the Town Office up until 8 p.m. on Election Night.
Here are the eight questions as they will appear on the Nov. 7 ballot, according to the secretary of state’s office:
Question 1: Public entity debt restrictions
“Do you want to bar some quasi-governmental entities and all consumer-owned electric utilities from taking on more than $1 billion in debt unless they get statewide voter approval?”
Question 2: Foreign campaign contributions ban
“Do you want to ban foreign governments and entities that they own, control, or influence from making campaign contributions or financing communications for or against candidates or ballot questions?”
Question 3: Consumer-owned power utility
“Do you want to create a new power company governed by an elected board to acquire and operate existing for-profit electricity transmission and distribution facilities in Maine?”
Question 4: Right to repair vehicles
“Do you want to require vehicle manufacturers to standardize on-board diagnostic systems and provide remote access to those systems and mechanical data to owners and independent repair facilities?”
Question 5: Judicial review period extension
“Do you favor amending the Constitution of Maine to change the time period for judicial review of the validity of written petitions from within 100 days from the date of filing to within 100 business days from the date of filing of a written petition in the office of the Secretary of State, with an exception for petitions filed within 30 calendar days before or after a general election?”
Question 6: Full constitution in printed copies
“Do you favor amending the Constitution of Maine to require that all of the provisions of the Constitution be included in the official printed copies of the Constitution prepared by the Secretary of State?”
Question 7: Removal of petition circulator rule
“Do you favor amending the Constitution of Maine to remove a provision requiring a circulator of a citizen’s initiative or people’s veto petition to be a resident of Maine and a registered voter in Maine, requirements that have been ruled unconstitutional in federal court?”
Question 8: Voting rights under guardianship
“Do you favor amending the Constitution of Maine to remove a provision prohibiting a person under guardianship for reasons of mental illness from voting for Governor, Senators and Representatives, which the United States District Court for the District of Maine found violates the United States Constitution and federal law?”
Have a comment or news tip? Email J. Craig Anderson at craig@harpswellanchor.org.
