State's high court puts brakes on decision to allow ranked-choice veto question in November - Press Herald

bentangos.blogspot.com

Maine’s Supreme Judicial Court on Tuesday blocked a Cumberland County Superior Court ruling that would have allowed a people’s veto question on ranked-choice voting in the presidential election to go on the November ballot.

The decision means the Maine Secretary of State could prepare ballots that include ranked-choice voting in the presidential contest. However, it’s still not clear whether the system will be used, as the high court will now consider an appeal of the lower court’s ruling on the issue.

Diane Hodges reaches for a ballot box during the 2nd Congressional District ranked-choice voting tabulation in Augusta in November 2018. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal Buy this Photo

In question is whether the Maine Republican Party collected enough valid voter signatures on petitions to place a people’s veto question on a 2019 law that extends Maine’s ranked choice voting system to presidential elections

State law requires 63,067 signatures from registered voters — or a number equal to 10 percent of those who participated in the last election for governor.

Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap rejected a people’s veto petition from the party earlier this year because the effort had not collected enough signatures from registered Maine voters and because about 1,000 signatures were collected by individuals, who themselves were not registered Maine voters — both requirements of the state’s constitution.

The party appealed Dunlap’s July decision to reject their petition to a Cumberland County Superior Court Justice, who determined the signatures collected by those not registered to vote should be counted.

But the lower court’s decision is also being appealed to the Supreme Judicial Court on the grounds Justice Thomas McKeon made an error of law when he did not consider some of facts before him. The facts included evidence showing a number of the signatures on the petitions filed by circulators who were not registered to vote included duplicate signatures or were from people who were not registered to vote in Maine when they signed. That left the petition drive at least 22 signatures short.

Time has been of the essence in the case, as Dunlap is require to prepare ballots for distribution to absentee voters including Mainers who are living overseas, mostly those serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, at least 60 days before the election, a deadline that has already passed.

In its decision issued Tuesday the state’s Law Court found the lower court’s decision is automatically put on hold pending the outcome of the appeal.

In an email message, Dunlap said, ballots had to go to the printer Tuesday but he did not say what the ballot would look like.

In their brief in support of staying the lower court’s reversal, the Committee for Ranked Choice Voting, argued that a plurality winner could be determined using a ranked-choice ballot, but a ranked-choice winner could not be determined with a traditional ballot. This suggests the ballot could be prepared for ranked-choice voting, but if the court sides with the Republican Party, then Dunlap would only count voters’ first choice in the 4-way presidential contest in Maine.

Under state law, the Supreme Judicial Court has until Sept. 24 to decide the appeal and uphold or overturn Dunlap’s July ruling. If it sides with Republicans ranked-choice voting would be put on hold for the presidential race in November — and voters would decide the ballot measure at the next statewide election. If the court sides with Dunlap and the Committee for Ranked Choice Voting, then voters would rank their candidates by preference in the presidential race.

Ranked-choice voting will still be used in Maine’s neck-and-neck U.S. Senate race between incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins, her Democratic challenger, Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon, Lisa Savage, a Green Party affiliated independent, and conservative independent Max Linn.

The new state law that applies ranked-choice voting to presidential elections in Maine would also determine how the state awards two of its four Electoral College votes. Maine is one of only two states to split its Electoral College votes based on the election’s outcome in each of its two U.S. congressional districts, with one vote going to the winner in each district and two votes going to the statewide winner.

The final decision on the use of the balloting system could become a significant factor in what many believe will be a tight presidential contest in 2020.

In 2016, for the first time in 30 years, the state split its Electoral College votes, with President Trump winning one of the state’s four votes by beating Democrat Hillary Clinton by 10 points in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District.

Clinton won the statewide vote and the state’s 1st Congressional District earning the other three votes.

The high court’s ruling is the latest in an ongoing series of legal disputes in both federal and state court over Maine’s first-in-the-nation ranked choice voting system.

Maine voters, in statewide ballot questions, have twice approved the system, although the state’s more northern, rural and conservative 2nd Congressional District has opposed it.

Dunlap, a Democrat, did not immediately respond to questions about what the November ballot would look like.

But Jason Savage, the executive director of the Maine Republican Party, said the decision to stay the lower court’s decision was merely “procedural.”

“Today’s Maine Judicial Supreme Court order was not on the merits of the People’s Veto to repeal ranked choice voting in Maine’s presidential elections,” Savage said in a prepared statement. “It is simply a procedural order holding that an automatic stay is in place until the issue is resolved in the court, as with any appeal of this nature.”

This story will be updated.

Invalid username/password.

Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.

« Previous

Maine approves adult-use cannabis stores in South Portland, Northport

Judge hears arguments to dismiss class-action suit against CMP

filed under: