AUGUSTA — A proposal by Senate Majority Leader Garrett Mason would decrease the information voters have before Election Day about political contributions made to Maine candidates. Mason, a Lisbon Falls Republican, proposed eliminating a requirement that candidates in the final weeks of a race report contributions of more than $1,000 within 24 hours because it […]
campaign finance
Posted inLocal & State
Maine congressional race shattered spending records
Given all the television advertisements during the campaign, it’s not surprising that Maine’s 2nd District congressional race this year shattered state spending records. Reports filed with the Federal Election Commission this week show that the two candidates, U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin and Democratic challenger Emily Cain, raised $6.85 million between them. Cain raised slightly more than […]
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Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Maine ethics commission targets big, out-of-state donors
AUGUSTA (AP) — A Maine ethics commission wants more disclosure from groups that contribute $100,000 or more to Maine politics. The Portland Press Herald reported (http://bit.ly/2ghg2qn ) that the Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Elections Practices on Thursday unanimously backed the proposal. The commission wants big donors to identify their top five donors, among other […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Maine Ethics Commission proposes new campaign finance rules
The Maine Ethics Commission has introduced a slate of new campaign finance rules that future candidates would have to follow if they win legislative approval. Some of the new rules, according to Jonathan Wayne, the ethics commission’s executive director, are the result of a 2015 referendum that was initiated by citizen petition. Other rules are […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Gov. Paul LePage calls Question 1 a scam to benefit the wealthy
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage said Wednesday that Question 1, promoting statewide election reform, is “a scam” aimed at making the “wealthy wealthier and the poor people dumb.” The proposal on the November ballot would boost Maine’s taxpayer-funded election system by increasing its two-year allocation from $4 million to $6 million, adding transparency requirements and […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Maine Republicans part of national effort for campaign disclosure
While Republicans in Congress continue to smother proposals for campaign finance transparency, statehouse Republicans from Maine to Montana are moving in the opposite direction. Some Republican state legislators are pushing back against the free-spending super-PACs and secretive independent groups that have been transforming U.S. politics into a proxy war among the super rich. “When somebody’s […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Gov. Paul LePage spent least to win re-election
AUGUSTA — In the heated three-way race for Maine governor, Republican Paul LePage spent the least amount of money on his re-election bid and still came out on top, according to final campaign finance reports filed this week. LePage, who won with 48 percent of the vote last month, spent about $1.9 million over the course […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Group says large donors have given $4.5 million to gubernatorial campaigns
AUGUSTA — A Maine group seeking to boost public funding for campaigns says that contributions from large donors in this year’s governor’s race have skyrocketed since 2010. An analysis from Maine Citizens for Clean Elections says that Republican Gov. Paul LePage, Democrat Mike Michaud and independent Eliot Cutler have raised a total of $4.5 million […]
Posted inLocal & State
Maine’s top 10 political donors giving $3.95 million
Learn About Tableau They are the elite of the elite. They may not be one in a million, but they are 10 in a million. The top 10 individual Maine donors to state and national political campaigns represent 0.001 percent of Maine’s adult population of about 1 million. But that percentage represents 27.3 percent of […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Michaud raises $440,000 in race, LePage $271,000
PORTLAND — Democratic candidate for governor Mike Michaud raised nearly $440,000 in the latest campaign finance reporting period, outpacing Republican Gov. Paul LePage, who raised $271,000 in their tight race. Independent candidate Eliot Cutler, who has trailed Michaud and LePage in polls, raised $183,000 in the period, which ran from mid-September to Tuesday. Of the […]