Category Archives: Elections

Open primaries may be the only way to save the Maine GOP

The Republican Party in Maine is in rough shape. Democrats last fall swept elections across the state, solidifying their majority in the House, winning control of the Senate, winning the governor’s race, and knocking off an incumbent congressman in our 2nd Congressional District for the first time in more than 100 years. On the heels […]

Political parties have corrupted our democracy

The biggest problem in politics right now is not Donald Trump. It’s also not Nancy Pelosi. It’s the concept of base-driven elections. In a normal democratic society, the goal of politics and elections would be to convince the most people that your policies are right and that you’re the most capable leader.   And when […]

Budget nonsense shows Maine GOP has earned its diminished stature

Political effectiveness is not determined by any one election cycle. It’s a culture, cultivated over years, across elections. The decisions made during this election cycle don’t go away after Election Day. They shape the opinions of voters over a lifetime, and mistakes made during one period aren’t forgotten just because one side wins or loses […]

Pingree fails in ‘Me and AOC’ foray

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a rock star. Amassing and leveraging millions of Twitter followers, “AOC,” as she’s come to be known, has become the perfect progressive counterweight to President Donald Trump. Charismatic and utterly unafraid, AOC has sparked the imagination of millions across the country. Chellie Pingree … hasn’t. Despite her best efforts to become […]

Gideon’s paid leave proposal is comedy gold — for Gov. Mills

The concept of a “straight man” is a bedrock comedy institution. A relatively normal, identifiable person is paired with an off-the-wall character, and the contrast between the two creates comedy gold. Laurel and Hardy, Burns and Allen, Abbott and Costello, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, the Smothers Brothers, all of these acts relied on the […]

Picking the primary winners: Republican edition

Last week, I laid out my predictions for the Democratic primary for governor. This week I’ll continue the wild speculation with my thoughts on the Republican primary. Where the Democratic primary is shaping up as a battle between the various factions within the party, the GOP primary is more of a contest between individuals seeking […]

Picking the primary winners: Democratic edition

With eight weeks to go until Maine voters select their party nominees for governor, the Republican and Democratic primaries are still wide open. No obvious frontrunners have emerged, and no public polling has been released. So, in the absence of quantifiable data, I’ll make some very subjective guesses about where these races are going. I’ll […]

Shawn Moody — LePage’s Mini Me

In politics, authenticity has become the coin of the realm. Voters value “straight talk” over ideology and style. The ascension of both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, two men who never would have been serious contenders for the presidency 10 or 20 years ago, shows the value voters now place on people willing to speak […]