Democrat and Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon is the 1st of 4 would-be challengers to incumbent U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, to turn in her petition for the June primary ballot.
Scott Thistle
Scott Thistle is the State House reporter for the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram. He has covered politics and government in Maine since 2006. Prior to that he served as the State House reporter for the Duluth News Tribune in Duluth, Minnesota. A Maine native, Thistle has worked in journalism since 1990, when he got his start at a weekly newspaper in rural Oxford County, Maine. He is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and an active volunteer with the National Ski Patrol. He resides with his wife, Amy and his two sons Finn and Kai, in Auburn, Maine. @thisdog
Maine Republicans seek to repeal ranked-choice voting in presidential elections
A petition drive announced Tuesday aims to put the question to the state’s voters in November.
Mills calls for more caseworkers, troopers in $127 million supplemental budget
The governor is asking lawmakers to fund more child protection caseworkers, broadband expansion and increased aid for education, all priorities she highlighted in her State of the State address in January.
Citing coronavirus, Mills urges voters to uphold Maine’s new vaccine law
Maine’s governor uses her weekly radio address to attack a citizens’ veto effort that would overturn the state’s new law to eliminate non-medical exemptions for childhood vaccines.
Legislative committee endorses 2 nominees to Maine supreme court
Catherine Connors, an appellate attorney from Kennebunk, and Superior Court Justice Andrew Horton of Falmouth were approved on 11-0 votes and await final confirmation in the Senate.
Maine lawmakers take up bill to ban ‘deepfake’ political ads
Supporters say the measure would protect election integrity and prevent deception of voters, but some lawmakers raised free speech concerns.
Democrats renew push for broadband expansion with $15 million proposal
Lawmakers rejected a borrowing plan for broadband investment last year, but a new bill would tap into the state’s General Fund to support a plan developed by the ConnectME Authority.
Maine joins federal lawsuit concerning 3-D printed guns
The Maine Attorney General’s Office has joined 19 other states in challenging the Trump administration’s decision to allow the firearms to be regulated by the Department of Commerce rather than the State Department.
Despite efforts to stem epidemic, Maine overdose deaths appear to be on rise again after 1-year dip
The Medical Examiner’s Office says 277 Mainers died from drug overdoses in the first 9 months of 2019, putting the state on track to surpass the total for 2018.
Lawmakers sideline proposed cellphone ban in parking lots
A bill that would have prohibited use of hand-held phones in parking lots now attempts only to clarify fines and other mistakes in the existing law.