Maine Gov. Certifies Another ‘Stolen Election’ for House Dems
Jared Golden/IMAGE: screenshot via Youtube
(Michael Barnes, Liberty Headlines) Maine Gov. Paul LePage didn’t mince words about a midterm congressional election that recently fell to a 36-year-old Democratic candidate, more than two months after Election Day.
LePage, an outspoken Republican, was forced to certify the election result after a contentious recount and intense legal battle. But as he formally cemented Democrat Jared Golden as the winner of Maine’s 2nd congressional district, LePage wrote “stolen election” next to his signature.
LePage tweeted Friday that a new state system allowing voters to rank candidates rather than selecting a single candidate if there is no outright majority gave Democrats the dubious edge.
Paul R. LePage✔@Governor_LePage
I’ve signed off on the CD2 election result as it’s no longer in federal court. Ranked Choice Voting didn’t result in a true majority as promised-simply a plurality measured differently. It didn’t keep big money out of politics & didn’t result in a more civil election #mepolitics
The Maine congressional election was the first time in U.S. history that ranked-choice voting was used to determine the outcome of a congressional election.
Maine’s 2nd congressional district is mostly rural and broke overwhelmingly for President Trump in 2016.
Golden, who serves as the assistant House majority leader in Maine’s state legislature, was considered a long-shot.
GOP two-term incumbent Rep. Bruce Poliquin won the most first-choice votes of any candidate on Election Day, but he fell slightly short of a clear majority at 46.4 percent in the four-way race that included two independents.
The election then went to a ranked-choice tabulation that saw Golden edge Poliquin 50.53 to 49.47.
“We have heard from countless Maine voters who were confused and even frightened their votes did not count due to computer-engineered rank voting,” said Brendan Conley, a spokesman for the Poliquin campaign.
The race was also the most expensive U.S. House election in Maine history.
The candidates and outside groups spent nearly $20.6 million by Election Day, with nearly 60 percent coming from Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.