BRUNSWICK

A small gathering led by Mainers for Government Accountability on the Brunswick Mall on Saturday took aim at Gov. Paul LePage — demanding his impeachment or voluntary removal from office.

During the rally, volunteers held signs and banners on Maine Street calling for impeachment of the governor. Others, held cutout cannons — a reference to the governor being a loose cannon.

Organizer Becky Halbrook said turnout at the Brunswick event, one of many planned statewide, was in part affected by the Common Ground Fair in Unity.

The rally also afforded the group the opportunity to collect signatures calling for LePage to step down.

The request comes following a failed attempt by state Democrats to hold a special session following the governor’s homophobic remarks to Westbrook Democrat Rep. Drew Gattine.

“Our thrust today is to try to persuade him to resign,” Halbrook said. “We think that the people power is in our favor.”

Also present was University of Farmington student Allyson Hammond. Hammond made headlines in April for holding a lone sign saying “LePage: Maine’s shame,” during a campus event at which the governor was speaking.

The sign prompted Le- Page to refer to Hammond as an “idiot” before storming off stage.

“The way I see it, if Paul LePage calls you an idiot, you’re probably doing something right,” Hammond said.

Hammond referred to LePage as “deteriorating” and “losing it,” because she didn’t want to believe the governor’s would have otherwise claimed — erroneously — that 90 percent of drug dealers in Maine are black and Hispanic.

“Gov. LePage identified black and Hispanic people as the enemy in his bizarre war metaphor,” Hammond said. “If that’s not racism, then I don’t know what is.”

Hammond called out Le- Page for “validating hordes of ignorant racist people,” while getting a pass by blaming his remarks on poor filtering.