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You asked how it all works, we answer: All your questions about voting
Our answers to your questions about Maine's voting system.
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Your questions answered:
- What are Maine officials doing to ensure polling place security?
- Will polling places be staffed by police on Election Day?
- Are people allowed to protest outside of polling places in Maine?
- Are political signs, banners and flags allowed at polling places?
- So what about my “MAGA” hat or my “I’m with Joe” sweatshirt – can I wear that when I go to cast my ballot in Maine?
- Are guns allowed in polling places in Maine?
- What about in the 250-foot exclusion zone outside of the polling place, can people display or carry firearms there?
- What if a voter feels threatened by a person carrying a firearm in or outside a polling place?
- What if they refuse, claiming it’s their 2nd Amendment right to have a gun?
- Does this mean they are already counting our votes?
- What does early processing entail exactly?
- What happens to the folded ballots?
- What happens to the ballots after they are scanned into the machine?
- What does early processing look like in towns that don’t have scanning machines?
- Are all municipalities processing absentee ballots early?
- Are all towns going to take the full seven days to process absentee ballots?
- How will I know if my town is processing absentee ballots early?
- What happens if someone shows up to vote on Election Day after having voted absentee?
- What about for absentee ballots that are returned on Election Day?
- If I still have my absentee ballot on Election Day, should I bring it to my polling place?
- How does ranked-choice voting factor into all of this?
- And what about those towns without voting machines?
- Is this also a public process?
- Are there any other safeguards?
- If I put my ballot in the mail today, will it be delivered on time?
- Why can’t they count my ballot if it is postmarked by Election Day?
- What happens if I forgot to get stamps or don’t have any?
- What should I do if I’m reading this less than a week before the election and my absentee ballot is still sitting on my kitchen table?
- What if I haven’t requested an absentee ballot yet, is it too late?
- I’ve already mailed my absentee ballot, how do I know if it got there?
- What if I’ve decided I want to vote in person on Election Day but have already received an absentee ballot?
- How many ballot scanning machines do we have in Maine and where are they used?
- How do these machines work?
- Do these machines have to meet any performance standards?
- Couldn’t these machines or their software be hacked into or tampered with over the internet?
- So it’s impossible to tamper with a ballot scanning machine in Maine?
- How can we know for sure that the system hasn’t been tampered with?
- I’m still skeptical. What happens if something does go screwy?
- Where do voters in hand-count towns put their ballots?
- How does ballot counting work with ranked-choice voting?
- But what about those towns that are hand counting ballots?
- What are the requirements to be a polling place worker?
- Are there restrictions on who can work at polling places?
- Are there any exceptions?
- How many election workers are required at each polling place?
- How much do these workers get paid?
- What exactly do polling place workers do?
- How does someone become a polling place worker?
- Are there background checks or other requirements for poll workers?
- Can poll workers be enrolled in a political party?
- What happens if I have problem with an election clerk when I’m casting my ballot?
- Are many absentee ballots rejected in Maine because of a mismatched signature?
- What will happen if the clerk decides my signature doesn’t match?
- What if my name changed since I last registered to vote? For example, I was married or divorced and I no longer sign my name the way I used to?
- What if I’m unable to sign my ballot because of a cognitive, physical or visual impairment but I still want to vote by absentee ballot?
- Are there any other ways a person who is visually impaired can vote in Maine?
- What’s the deadline for doing this?
- Where are drop boxes usually located?
- Can political parties or someone else put out a drop box?
- When can I drop my ballot off at a drop box?
- Do I have to do anything special to return my ballot this way?
- Do I need to put postage on the envelope if I drop it in a drop box?
- Can I put my ballot sealed in the envelope in any municipal drop box?
- Can I drop off all my neighbors’ ballots when I drop mine off?
- How long have drop boxes been a thing in Maine?
- Are all municipalities in Maine required to offer ballot drop boxes?
- Where are all these boxes coming from?
- Is anybody actually using these drop boxes to vote?
- How often are the boxes emptied and who does that?
- What if somebody drops their ballot in the box after 8 p.m. on Election Day?
- Who is keeping an eye on these boxes when the office is closed?
- What if someone were to vandalize, tamper with or destroy a drop box or the ballots inside it?
- How many ballots did the state have printed for November?
- What happens if my polling place runs out of ballots?
- Does a photocopied ballot still work in the voting machines?
- What can I do if I make a mistake on my absentee ballot?
- What do I do if I make a mistake when I’m voting at the polls?
- What if I make a mistake on my replacement ballot?
- Do the clerks have to notify me if a mistake on my ballot causes it to be rejected?
- How does ranked-choice voting work?
- How is this different from traditional elections?
- What happens if I only want to vote for one candidate?
- What happens if my candidate receives the fewest number of votes in the first round?
- What happens if I rank my preferred candidate in all of the available preference positions?
- What happens if I rank two candidates in first place?
- What happens if I only rank my first- and second-place candidates?
- Does all this tabulation take place at my local polling station?
- This sounds like it could take some time. Will we know who won on election night?
- I want to vote early. What do I need to do?
- Now that I’m registered to vote, how do I get an absentee ballot?
- How long do I have to do that?
- What are the hours and dates for early voting?
- What can I expect at the polling place?
- Do I have to request an absentee ballot before I go to the polling place?
- Do I need to give a reason for voting absentee?
- I requested and received an absentee ballot in the mail. Do I have to return it by mail?
- What if I want to mail it back?
- What will I need to bring if I want to request an absentee ballot at the polling place?
- If I vote early, does that mean my ballot will be counted early?
- My mailbox is being inundated with political messages. How do these organizations get my address?
- The letter states they know I requested an absentee ballot based on “public records.” Does that mean anybody can find out if I requested an absentee ballot?
- So what records are publicly available?
- How much does the state charge for my “confidential” data and who can buy it?
- What data can be included in what’s sold?
- Can I get any of this data as a voter and how much does that cost?
- Is there anyway I can opt out of having the information on my voter records sold?
- What about those stamps the Democrats sent in their mailing? I thought it was illegal to give something of value to encourage a person to vote.
- How will I be able to vote if I live in a long-term care facility?
- If I can’t physically hold a pen to mark a ballot, how do I vote?
- What if I have a visual impairment and can’t read my ballot?
- Can I still vote in Maine if I’ve been placed in legal guardianship?
- I have some mobility issues but would still like to vote in person. Can I do that?
- Where can I get more information on voting access for people with disabilities?
- I requested an absentee ballot but I’ve changed my mind and want to vote in person. What do I do?
- When will my ballot be counted?
- Are they actually counting my vote when they process my absentee ballot?
- So how does that all work?
- What if I forget to sign the back of the return envelope for my absentee ballot?
- What happens when the envelope with my ballot is opened?
- Are the results from absentee ballots tallied as they are processed?
- How would I know if the clerk got my absentee ballot in the first place?
- How do I register?
- What documents do I need to register?
- Is my voter registration permanent?
- Is my voter registration private?
- What if I’m a college student?
- When can voters be removed from a voter list?
- What should I do if I haven’t voted in awhile?
- Where have voter purges taken place recently?
- But what about Maine?
- What does it mean if my voter registration is designated “inactive?”
- What if I don’t respond?
- How many inactive voters are there in Maine?
- How else are inactive lists used?
- What happens if I go to vote and officials tell me I’m not registered?
- What if I don’t remember to bring any of that to the polling station?
- How does Maine’s purge rate stack up?
Recent Coverage
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October 28, 2020Clerks can remove ballots from envelopes and run them through optical scanning machines, but the votes can't be tallied until the polls close next Tuesday. -
October 27, 2020With Election Day only 7 days off, officials warn that any ballots mailed after Oct. 27 night not be received in time to count.
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October 27, 2020Here's what you need to know about the technology that Maine uses to count votes on Election Day.
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Concerns that polling places wouldn't have enough help on Nov. 3 have been eased by a wave of new volunteers and an increase in absentee voting. Here's what you need to know about polling workers in Maine.
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October 21, 2020Maine law requires local election officials to match the signature on your absentee ballot application to your absentee ballot.
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October 20, 2020Dozens of Maine cities and towns have installed secure absentee ballot drop boxes to help voting go smoothly.
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October 19, 2020Polling places can get permission to photocopy ballots if supplies run low, but that will slow the count because copies can't be fed into tabulating machines.
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October 16, 2020Here's what you need to know about ranked-choice voting, which only Maine will use in the presidential election.
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October 15, 2020Here's what you need to know if you want to vote early by absentee ballot and avoid polling places during the coronavirus pandemic.
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Some mailings about absentee balloting, including a recent one from the Maine Democratic Party, raise questions about access to voting records.
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October 6, 2020Efforts to improve voting access for Mainers with disabilities range from a new online system to a new guide for families and caretakers of residents living in long-term care.
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September 30, 2020Many are asking what they should do if they change their minds about whether to vote absentee or vote in person.
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September 29, 2020With a record number of voters requesting absentee ballots, some want to know when those votes actually get counted.
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September 28, 2020Maine voters are requesting absentee ballots in record numbers, and in the next few days local election officials will begin to mail those ballots out.
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September 24, 2020Maine's system for removing voters from official lists has been criticized in the past, but state officials say they no longer follow those procedures.
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September 28, 2020Here's what you need to know to ensure that you are able to vote in the November election.
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