Maine's Electoral College members met in Augusta Tuesday to officially cast the state's four votes for president based on the outcome of last month's election.
For the third straight time, Maine split its electoral votes between the Democratic and Republican candidates because the state's two congressional districts supported different contenders last month. Only Maine and Nebraska split their Electoral College votes.
"I now declare that Kamala D. Harris of California and Timothy J. Walz of Minnesota have each received three electoral votes of the great state of Maine," declared Democrat Jay Philbrick of Yarmouth, who presided over the formal voting and vote-counting process. "I now declare that Donald J. Trump of Florida and James D. Vance of Ohio have each received one electoral vote of the great state of Maine.
In addition to Philbrick, the two other Democratic electors were Betty Johnson of Lincolnville and state Sen. Jill Duson of Portland. Joel Stetkis of Canaan, who is the chairman of the Maine Republican Party, cast the single ballot for Trump because he won the majority of votes in the 2nd Congressional District. Harris picked up three of Maine's four electors by winning both the 1st Congressional District and the statewide vote.
Electors gathered in state capitals across the country Tuesday to go through the ceremonial process of selecting a president and vice president. Congress will formally certify those results and Trump's victory on Jan. 6.
Tuesday's proceedings were mostly apolitical. Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, addressed the four electors and other observers who had gathered in the chamber of the House of Representatives. Mills as well as Secretary of State Shenna Bellows noted that more than 800,000 voters cast ballots in Maine during last month's elections, which was a record for the state.
"Today these four individuals are convened in a college in this hall, acting in honor and in good faith to execute the will of those people, the voters of Maine, and to embody the peaceful transfer of power that is so vital to our 248-year experiment in democracy," Mills said.
But some partisan overtones still crept into the official proceedings along with references — both direct and indirect — to the chaos and violence of Jan. 6, 2021, when mobs of Trump supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to disrupt congressional certification of Joe Biden's win over Trump.
"While my preferred candidate did not win nationally, I strongly support this process to certify the election result and pass the presidential baton peacefully," Duson said during comments.
Stetkis talked about how for several years Maine people "have been struggling under crushing big-government inflation, wide-open borders allowing criminals and drugs to flood into our neighborhoods." The former state lawmaker also spoke about an "endless growth of government intruding into the private lives and livelihoods of all of the people, and the reprehensible use of our great legal and electoral systems to target political adversaries."
He predicted a stronger nation under Trump's "unity leadership" but made no mention of the turmoil that followed the election four years ago.
Philbrick, however, said that "we came close to losing" the tradition of peaceful transfers of power on Jan. 6, 2021. And he talked about how, working in Washington, D.C. this fall, he saw barricades going up and businesses planning to close immediately after the election out of fear of what might happen after the election.
While Philbrick said he was thankful this year's transition has gone peacefully, he said that was uncertain before Election Day.
"We need an ironclad commitment from every American to the peaceful transition of power, regardless of who wins," Philbrick said. "And we need our leaders to understand that losing an election is never a justification for violence."
