PORTLAND, Maine — Supporters of a proposal to raise Maine's minimum wage have more than enough signatures to put the issue on the statewide ballot.
The campaign announced it collected more than 30,000 signatures on Election Day, bringing its total to more than 90,000 signatures. That's well over the minimum of 61,123 needed to qualify — all but guaranteeing placement on the 2016 ballot.
On Election Day, Portland voters rejected a proposal to raise the minimum wage to $15.
The proposal for the statewide ballot would raise Maine's minimum wage to $9 in 2017, then by $1 a year until it reaches $12 by 2020. After that. it'd increase at the rate as the cost of living.
The campaign manager for Mainers for Fair Wages says working people "deserve better than poverty pay for full time work."