Calling the recent flurry of executive actions by President Donald Trump and the rapid dismantling of federal agencies a "coup," hundreds of people braved bitter cold temperatures and gusty winds for what was billed as a "No Kings Day rally" at the State House on Monday.
"We are cold but we are fired up," said organizer Rachel Flehinger of the fledging group Activate Maine who led the crowd in a chant.
She urged people to use their anger to stand together and organize rather than giving into hate and expressing it online.
"They want us worried about every single thing we stand for," she said. "But we will stand together."
The rally was part of a national day of action on Presidents Day to uphold the Constitution and the principles of "separate but equal" branches of government as tens of thousands of federal workers are fired and entire programs are erased.
Many carried signs critical of billionaire and Trump campaign supporter Elon Musk whose hand-picked Department of Government Efficiency has sparked multiple lawsuits and is now reportedly seeking access to personal taxpayer information at the Internal Revenue Service.
"I'm getting asked a lot, 'What do we do?'" said Secretary of State Shenna Bellows.
A Democrat, Bellows is the former executive director of the ACLU of Maine, which is among the organizations using the courts to intervene. And Bellows told the crowd there's another way to preserve democracy.
"We are the ones who need to stand up for justice. We are the people who have the power. We are the ones who need to resist executive overreach. We are the ones who know we need to stand strong to resist fascism," Bellows said.
Protesters also turned out in Boston; Washington, D.C.; Orlando and other cities. Organizers say they're hopeful that a pair of special elections in Florida in April can help narrow the GOP's majority in the U.S. House.