Maine voters turned out Tuesday for primary elections that will decide nominees for governor, Congress and a U.S. Senate seat.
Nearly 93,000 voters had requested absentee ballots statewide as of Monday, with Democrats filing 58% of those requests compared to just 22% for Republicans. In Bangor alone, 2,229 absentee ballots were requested, with Democrats accounting for 63% of them.
Voters leaving the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor Tuesday morning said they were most energized by the gubernatorial race and the Democratic primary challenge to U.S. Sen. Susan Collins.
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Amy Smith, a 51-year-old Democrat, ranked Nirav Shah first and Troy Jackson second for governor and voted for Matt Dunlap in the four-way primary in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District. She said she supports Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner more than any other figure on the ballot and that his controversies — including claims he was “toxic” in past relationships — haven’t changed her mind.
“I don’t care if he’s a bad boyfriend if he’s going to be good for our state,” she said.
Platner’s political rise is drawing heavy national media coverage, including many set to attend his election night party in Blue Hill. Gov. Janet Mills remains in that primary despite suspending her campaign in April. She greeted voters in Waterville with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Hannah Pingree, whom she has endorsed.
That race looked nip and tuck going into Election Day, with Shah, the former public health chief, Pingree and Jackson leading the way in recent polls. On the Republican side, Bobby Charles has consistently led polls of the field of seven candidates. The four-way 2nd Congressional District primary was also up in the air alongside several legislative primaries.
Roughly 800 people had voted by 11 a.m. Tuesday, according to Bangor City Clerk Lisa Goodwin. Turnout looked steady across polling stations in York and Cumberland counties, said Deputy Secretary of State Kate McBrien, who was doing visits in place of her boss, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who is in the Democratic governor’s race.
“Everyone reported small lines at their polling places when they opened in the morning, which is great,” McBrien said.