Elections 2020 results: An election cycle like no other in recent history

ST. GEORGE — With the COVID-19 pandemic bringing uncertainty to the State of Maine and uncertainty over public education funding, the St. George Municipal School Unit is taking steps in its proposed 2020-2021 budget to address those uncertainties. 

The proposed school budget reduces the assessment, according to St. George MSU Superintendent Mike Felton, to the Town of St. George by about $40,000. 

“The proposed budget is part of a long-term strategy to protect our district…

BURNHAM — Voters in Burnham will be casting their ballots for the proposed SAD 53 school budget during the July 14 elections. 

SAD 53 serves the communities of Burnham, Detroit and Pittsfield. Burnham is the only SAD 53 community, however, within the Penobscot Bay Pilot coverage area. 

Question One: School Budget

Shall the district appropriate the sum of $12,989,735 and raise the…

As the District 93 Representative for the Maine House, I know what it takes to be effective in Augusta. We need people like Chip who listen, who can find common ground with others and who can solve problems for the people of Maine.

I’ve seen Chip Curry open doors, give support, and guide people to achieving their career goals. Through my work with Penquis and the Knox County Homeless Coalition, I regularly connected with people who were in difficult life situations, and had not even…

WINTERPORT — Voters in Winterport will be casting their ballots for the proposed RSU 22 school budget during the July 14 elections. 

RSU 22 serves the communities of Hampden, Newburgh, Winterport and Frankfort. Winterport and Frankfort are the only RSU 22 communities, however, within the Penobscot Bay Pilot coverage area. 

Question One: School Budget

Shall the district…

ROCKLAND — With one week remaining before Maine’s election primaries, absentee ballots are still available for any voter who cannot, or doesn’t want to, go to the polls on July 14. 

Rockland has submitted the following reminder to its voters: “If you call City Hall to request an absentee ballot, you must speak to a person in the office. Requests for absentee ballot cannot be accepted via voicemail message.”

This July, voters statewide will choose candidates for the Democratic…

UNION — Regional School Unit 40 has outlined its proposed budget to be voted on during the July 14 elections, and also highlighted the importance of supporting public education. 

RSU 40 includes the towns of Friendship, Union, Washington, Waldoboro and Warren. 

In a budget presentation, seven budget priorities were highlighted: 

1. Raise awareness about financial needs and challenges
2. Support an informed decision about funding the district’s schools
3.…

NORTH HAVEN — The proposed 2020-2021 school budget for MSAD 7, serving the North Haven Community School, will head before voters during the July 14 elections. 

Voters will be tasked with deciding on 29 articles during the voting process. 

Article 1: To elect a moderator to preside at the meeting (written ballot required by statute). 

Article 2: To see what sum the District will be authorized to expend for Regular Instruction. 

…

HOPE — The 2020-2021 proposed school budget for Hope Elementary School has been established and will be put in front of voters July 14. 

The proposed budget contains only one question, a sharp contrast from other area school budget proposals, and 14 articles.

Question One: School Budget

LINCOLNVILLE — Approximately 4.34 acres of prime waterfront land along the west side of Penobscot Bay could fall under public ownership, if voters in Lincolnville agree to a real estate exchange without monetary attachments. Selectmen in Lincolnville unanimously endorsed the idea in April, hoping the…

APPLETON — Appleton Village School officials and its school committee has set its proposed school budget for the upcoming 2020-2021 academic year. 

The proposed budget, which includes four referendum questions and 19 articles, will be put forward to voters during the July 14 elections. 

Question One

School Budget. Shall the Town appropriate the sum of $2,895,434 and raise the sum of $ 1,…

SEARSPORT — Regional School Unit 20, serving the communities of Searsport and Stockton Springs, has established its proposed budget for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year and will now send the proposed budget to voters at the July 14 elections.

The budget being presented is $10,348,201 plus a Food Service budget of $194,000, bringing the total budget to $10,542,201.

“This budget will provide more educational opportunities,” said RSU 20 School Board Chairperson Anthony Bagley…

PALERMO — Voters of Palermo will be deciding on the proposed 2020-2021 school budget for the RSU 12 school district during the July 14 elections. 

RSU 12 serves the communities of Alna, Chelsea, Palermo, Somerville, Whitefield, Windsor and Westport Island. The towns of Palermo, however, is the only community within the Penobscot Bay Pilot coverage area. 

The district has established goals for itself, including: fostering a safe learning environment; providing a…

BELFAST — Regional School Unit 71 has held its virtual public hearing for the 2020-2021 school budget and is now prepared to pose the 15 articles and six referendum questions to voters during the July 14 elections. 

RSU 71 includes the communities of Belfast, Belmont, Morrill, Searsmont and Swanville. 

Below is a general overview of the proposed RSU 71 budget. View the attached documents to view a detailed version of the proposed budget and the school budget public hearing…

It is always a good day when you draw Chip Curry as a doubles partner in tennis; he runs down everything.  After tennis, eight of us often get a chance to sit and talk.  These coffee and bagel forums are wide ranging - current events, reliable car mechanics, movies, outrages, fishing, frustrations, and whatever piques anyone’s interest at the moment is reason enough to get down in the weeds and share opinions, advice, and information.

When Sara Gideon was Speaker of the House, a fellow legislator was accused of sexual misbehavior.  That was two years ago.  No charges have ever been filed. 

In America an absence of guilt is the same as an assumption of innocence, until it can be proven otherwise.  And yet, the best Susan Collins can come up with…

I am very pleased to endorse Chip Curry for the Maine State Senate. I have known Chip for many years as a member of our church community, as a volunteer on too many to name projects, as an educator, and as a father and spouse. In every one of these areas he is totally committed, giving them his all. 

As an educator, academic advisor, and parent, Chip…

Here’s why I voted early for Glenn Chip Curry for the Maine Senate in the primary and why I’ll support Chip in the general election. 

I’ve known Chip for years but more importantly he has known Waldo County and Maine for years. His long history with all of Waldo County makes him stand out above the rest.  We need more of that.

The policies he supports and the way he would serve will be a good…

We the undersigned, current and former election workers for the Town of Thomaston, want to urge everyone to vote by mail in the upcoming election to be held on July 14.

To vote by mail if you are a registered voter in Thomaston, you must call the Town Office at 354-6107 and request that the ballots be mailed to you. When you receive the ballots, mark them with your votes and mail them back to the Town Office. If you wish, you may hand deliver your ballots to the Town Office drop box…

CAMDEN — The School Administration District 28 has outlined its $17 million proposed school budget for the 2020-2021 academic year. SAD 28 comprises Camden-Rockport Elementary and Middle schools and the towns of Camden and Rockport.

As such, the district is slated to hold its virtual public hearing on the proposed budget Monday, July 2 at 6 p.m. ahead of the July 14 elections. 

ROCKPORT — The Five Town Consolidated School District has outlined its proposed $13.3 million school budget for the 2020-2021 academic year.  The CSD oversees Camden Hills Regional High School, on Route 90 in Rockport, and educates 9-12 grade students in Appleton, Camden, Hope, Lincolnville and Rockport.

As such, the district is slated to hold its virtual public hearing on the proposed budget Thursday, July 2, at 7 p.m. ahead of the July 14 elections. 

The hearing will be…

ROCKLAND — The proposed school budget for Regional School Unit 13 has been set forth by the district for voters to decide at the July 14 polls. RSU 13 serves the communities of Cushing, Owls Head, Rockland, South Thomaston and Thomaston. 

RSU 13 schools include:

• Oceanside High
• Oceanside…

On July 14, citizens in Lincolnville will vote for two candidates, Josh Gerritsen and Mike Ray, to serve a three-year term on the Lincolnville Board of Selectmen. While these candidates are the only two running for the two open seats (Jonathan Fishman is not seeking reelection) Penobscot Bay Pilot has posed questions to each candidate, providing…

I have known Chip Curry and his wife since we moved to Belfast over 11 years ago. My husband and I have been active supporters of our current state senator, Erin Herbig, and we are engaged voters who would like to see another qualified Democrat take her place. To prepare for the July 14 primary, I have watched two candidates’ debates and we are lucky to have three good people to choose from. 

However, as a committed environmentalist I was particularly impressed with the statements…

BURNHAM — The Town of Burnham held its municipal elections Friday, June 26 and provided the following results from its municipal elections on its town website. 

SELECTMAN
Chadwick, Roger A. 52
Chase, Brent S. 80
Huff, Stuart C. 118

TREASURER
Miles 239

HIGHWAY COMMISSIONER
King, R. Charles 215

MSAD #53 DIRECTOR
Hughes, Ronald H. 227

Question: Do you…

I am writing to express my support for Chip Curry to represent Waldo County in the Maine State Senate.

I first met Chip when he advised on challenges and opportunities with the AmeriCorps program through the Maine Commission for Community Service.  When he made a two-hour trip to my office for an early morning meeting to provide guidance on staffing challenges, he arrived with his usual positive “can-do” attitude. 

He listened well and left having built relationships and…

BURNHAM — After twice postponing its municipal elections and annual town meeting, the Town of Burnham has settled on a new date for both events according to a notice Wednesday from the town office. 

The municipal election will be held Friday, June 26 at the town hall from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. while the annual town meeting will be held Saturday, June 27 at the fire station on Troy Road at 1 p.m. 

Absentee ballots are still available for those who prefer to vote early. 

…

AUGUSTA — Twenty-nine individuals have filed with the Maine Secretary of State to run for state legislature positions representing towns in Knox, Waldo and Lincoln counties. 

Municipalities within the Pilot’s coverage area include District 91 through 99, 131 and 134 in the House of Representatives and District 11 through 13 in the Senate. 

Nearly all incumbents are seeking re-election in the Midcoast, save for two: Pinny Beebe-Center (House District 93) and Erin Herbig (…

July 14th is an important date for Waldo County- it will be time to vote for the primaries. While there are three Democratic candidates for the state Senate, my vote will be going to Robyn Stanicki.

Having lived in Winterport and now Belfast, Robyn is no stranger to Waldo County and how important a sense of community is. For years, she has been supporting local businesses. This has only strengthened after relocating to Belfast and meeting people from many walks of life.
…

AUGUSTA — The Mills Administration released detailed guidance Monday for Maine local governing bodies to hold gatherings, such as annual town meetings, school budget meetings, and elections, during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

…

Black Lives Matter.

The phrase uttered on the lips of nearly every American now carries an extra weight of urgency and meaning. White people like myself are moving beyond thinking that just being a good person is enough, and our silence, deafening complicity.

The explosive energy that is rejuvenating the BLM movement comes during a time when we also spend highlighting the challenges and celebrations of the LGBTQ community. But just as Black Lives Matter asks us to re-examine…

Martha Johnston-Nash and William “Bill” Lombardi will be seeking election to two selectman seats in the town of Union. Both have collected signatures and have been certified to be on the ballot, Lombardi for a three-year term, and Johnston-Nash for a two-year seat.

Lombardi is recently retired as owner/operator, with his wife, of a natural product brokerage serving New England. His background is primarily financial, having served over twenty-five years in investment positions with…

AUGUSTA — Governor Janet Mills issued Thursday an Executive Order regarding the facilitation of Maine’s primary and municipal elections slated for July 14. 

As the statewide election (both primary and referendum elections) will be held on July 14, 2020 instead of in June 2020 in accordance with Executive Order 39 FY 20/21, the language in PL 2019, c. 673, sections A-9 and B-10 that provides, "This
Part must be submitted to the legal voters of the State at a statewide election…

UPDATE (6/4/20): The Town of Burnham announced Thursday afternoon that both the municipal election slated for June 5 and the annual town meeting scheduled for June 6 have been postponed. New dates have not been decided.

BURNHAM — Residents in Burnham will be casting their ballots Friday, June 5 more than two months later than anticipated. 

The Town of Burnham was slated to hold its municipal election March 20, the…

WINTERPORT — Dr. Charles F. Pattavina, D-Winterport, announced his candidacy for Senate District 11, which serves Waldo County, according to a May 31 press release. 

He is concerned about a wide range of issues, the release noted, and “commits to representing the interests of the people of Waldo County as well as anyone can.”

Important issues, to him, include: civility in politics (and everyday life), climate change (and how addressing it can help us have a booming economy),…

AUGUSTA —  Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap is now accepting public comment for the wording of the energy transmission project citizens' initiative question that is qualified to appear on the Nov. 3, 2020 Referendum Election ballot.

The Bureau of Corporations, Elections and Commissions initially certified the citizens initiative Resolve, To Reject the New England Clean Energy Connect Transmission Project on March 4, with an amended decision issued April 1 following a court ruling…

ROCKLAND — The Rockland City Clerk’s Office has seen an uptick in requests for absentee voting, and the Clerk’s Office doesn’t even have the ballots yet, according to Rockland City Clerk Stuart Sylvester, during the May 13 City budget meeting. 

Sylvester told Council that a Primary Election year would typically draw about 200 absentee requests in Rockland. So far this year, with Maine election officials being told to proceed as normal despite constant questions surrounding social…

BELFAST — Robyn Stanicki of Belfast has joined two other candidates seeking the Democratic nomination to represent Waldo County in the Maine State Legislature as part of Senate District 11, according to a news release.

She is a clinical researcher employed by Dartmouth College, and assists Maine-based partners in coordinating projects related to substance use disorders in Maine.

“Robyn has been writing, advocating, and helping Maine implement sensible policies to reform the…

NORTHPORT — The Town of Northport has announced a new date for its annual town meeting and municipal elections. 

The annual town meeting, scheduled for June 1, has been rescheduled for Thursday, July 16. 

The municipal elections, scheduled for May 20, has been rescheduled for Tuesday, July 14. 

Times and locations will be announced at a later date. 

“We will update this when a definite time and place has been set,” a notice on the town website stated. “Please note…

BURNHAM — The Town of Burnham announced Friday morning the town office has reopened, and asks visitors to observe posted guidelines when arriving at the facility. 

Additionally, the town has scheduled the municipal secret ballot vote for June 5 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. and the annual town meeting for June 6, time to be determined. 

“We will notify residents as the June 6 meeting time is determined and/or if there are any changes to these dates,” the town said in a…

WALDOBORO — Former Waldoboro Selectman and Shellfish Committee chair Lowell Wallace (R-Waldoboro) has announced, through a news release, plans to run for House District 91, which includes Waldoboro, Friendship, Washington and part of Union.

Before retiring to help his son with his commercial lobster fishing business, Wallace worked as a store manager for several large department stores including 19 years for Reny’s at their Bath, Camden and Damariscotta locations.

“I am very…

On April 6, the League of Women Voters of Maine joined 12 other advocacy organizations committed to protecting the safety of voters, poll location workers, and the election process. The organizations forwarded suggestions to state government that called upon changes to the ways in which registration,…

Before the first case of the coronavirus hit Maine in March, U.S. Senate hopeful Tiffany Bond was on track to have the 4,000 signatures she needs to get on the November ballot. Unaffiliated with a major political party, Bond is attempting to unseat Republican Susan Collins in one of the closest-watched senate races in the nation.

On March 13, Bond was headed from the courthouse in Portland to City Hall to drop off 450 signatures so they could be verified. It was late afternoon, and…

AUGUSTA — The Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap drew the order of the bond questions for the July 14 Special Referendum Election ballot by random drawing this morning, April 21, in his office at the Nash School Building in Augusta. 

The drawing is a public proceeding, but due to social distancing efforts in place to combat the spread of COVID-19, the department opted to livestream the event. As such, you can view the video below. 

Voters will decide on the two bond…

AUGUSTA — Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap will be drawing the order of the bond questions for the July 14 Special Referendum Election ballot next week. 

Voters will decide on the two bond questions in the Special Referendum Election on Tuesday, July 14, 2020, voting on this statewide ballot on the same day as the State Primary Election.

Secretary Dunlap will determine the ballot order of the bond questions by random drawing Tuesday, April 21 at 11 a.m. in his office at the…

AUGUSTA — Governor Janet Mills signed April 10 an Executive Order moving Maine’s primary election from Tuesday, June 9 to Tuesday, July 14.

The Order, which is effective immediately, allows applications for absentee ballots to be made in writing or in person, without specifying a reason, up to and including the day of the election, according to a news release. 

It also extends the deadline for qualifying contributions under the Maine Clean Election Act to May 19.

AUGUSTA — During an April 7 press briefing, Governor Janet Mills noted the state is targeting July 14 for the primary elections date.

Currently, the primary is slated to be June 9, for which municipalities around the state have scheduled polling infrastructure to be in place.

However, with the COVID-19 restrictions also in place, the Governor said in the briefing the new election date is likely to be July 14.

Gov. Mills said the new date allows lead time to get…

APPLETON — While COVID-19 has impeded normal municipal business and town offices are closed, town election processes remain underway in Appleton, including the return of nomination papers for those seeking office at June polls.

So far:

David Gould has returned papers for road commissioner.

Jacob Boyington has taken papers for road commissioner.

Gary Roberts has taken out Planning Board Papers.

Lorie Costigan has taken papers for Select Board.

ROCKPORT — Like other Maine municipalities, Rockport is not sure how June elections and the schedule for annual town meeting will proceed, given a pandemic; for the time being, however, it’s local government, as usual (aside from closed town office and staff working at home), and nomination papers for those appearing on ballot must be returned by 5 p.m., April 10.

So far, two Select Board members – Doug Cole and Mark Kelley – have taken out papers to reseat themselves for a second…

BELFAST — Belfast Republican Matt Digioia has formally announced plans to penbaypilot.com to run for House District 97, which includes Belfast, Northport and Waldo. 

Digioia, a recovering addict himself, said in a news release he would focus on the state’s drug crisis and ways to get people struggling with addiction back on the right track.

“It’s been a tough road,” he said. “Addiction takes over your whole life and doesn’t let you go. I’ve been there, and I’ve lost good…

CAMDEN — The deadline for returning nomination papers to be on the June municipal election ballot is April 10 in Camden. So far, two seated select board members, Bob Falciani and Alison McKellar, have taken out papers. Peter Lindquist has also taken out papers to get signatures.

So far, no papers have been returned. The process involves candidates collecting signatures to be placed on the ballot.

Camden Town Clerk Katrina Oakes is working from home but said she is able to…

LINCOLNVILLE — While disruptions are common this spring, municipalities are working hard to keep local government on track, and on schedule. In Lincolnville, as the town shapes its budget for 2020-2021, candidates hoping to serve on the select board, school committee and other municipal committees are returning their nomination papers to the town office.

“As of right now the deadline for return of nomination papers is 4:30 p.m., April 10,” said Lincolnville Town Administrator David…