Independent candidates Lisa Savage and Max Linn staked out positions in Friday’s U.S. Senate debate that, at times, contrasted sharply with the contenders from the two major parties — Sen. Susan Collins and Democratic challenger Sara Gideon — in a race that features ranked-choice voting.
Savage, who is running as an unenrolled candidate but is endorsed by the Green Independent Party, specifically referenced ranked-choice voting in calling for voters to list her as their initial choice, saying the system means they don’t have to fear inadvertently helping someone they don’t support. Maine’s ranked-choice system allows voters to list candidates in order of preference. If a candidate gets 50 percent of the vote, they win. If not, the candidate with the least amount of support is eliminated, and the votes they received are redistributed to those voters’ second choice.
Savage expressed support for a series of progressive policies during the debate, including Medicare for All and a Green New Deal. She also drew a contrast with other candidates in her response to a question about the Black Lives Matter movement and calls for defunding the police.
“As a public school teacher, I’ve been defunded many times, and I still went ahead and did my job,” Savage said.
“I do think we need to demilitarize the police,” she continued. “All this military equipment the Pentagon has been sending police forces in our cities has made things more dangerous, not safer.”
She added that police are often sent into situations that a social worker or mental health professional would be more qualified to handle.
In contrast, when asked about racial justice and police brutality protests, Collins highlighted her support for a bill introduced by Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina that stopped short of banning chokeholds by police. Democrats blocked the bill, pointing out that it did nothing to end qualified immunity for officers, a practice that often shields police from lawsuits aimed at holding them accountable. In one recent case, WBUR reported that after a woman gave police permission to enter her home, they broke her windows and sprayed tear gas inside, making the home unlivable for months. The woman’s lawsuit was dismissed due to qualified immunity.
In her answer, Gideon strongly opposed defunding the police, instead voicing support for policing reforms such as racial bias training and banning the use of choke holds.
Linn, the other independent candidate on the stage, contributed some of the stranger moments of the debate. Linn often refused to answer questions posed by the moderators, instead branching off in a variety of directions with his responses. In his answers, Linn mixed a number of right-wing positions with more progressive or populist stances such as opposing the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, for whom Collins cast a deciding vote.
Linn also expressed his opposition to a corridor proposed by Central Maine Power that would cut through miles of Maine wilderness — a plan that has drawn opposition from environmentalists — and declared that he would sue the company to stop the project.
Maine’s U.S. Senate race has drawn considerable attention nationwide given its potential to shift the balance of power in the Senate from the Republicans to the Democrats. It remains to be seen what impact the independent candidates may have on the close contest between Collins and Gideon.
But during the debate, Savage repeatedly reminded Mainers that they can vote their conscience on issues important to them, such as health care.
“Under ranked-choice voting … if voters agree with me that they support Medicare for All, they can rank me first without any fear of spoiling the election, and they can show with that vote [their support for] Medicare for All too.”
Photo: Screenshot of Lisa Savage during Friday’s debate.
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September 12, 2020 at 07:24PM
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Independent candidates introduce themselves in U.S. Senate debate for ranked-choice race - mainebeacon.com
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