While voters handily reelected both of Maine’s Democratic representatives to the U.S. House of Representatives, a sea change occurred at the state level as the governorship and the legislature apparently have switched from Democratic to Republican control.
In a surprisingly close governor’s race, Republican Paul LePage appears to have narrowly held off a late surge by Independent candidate Eliot Cutler while trouncing Democratic candidate Libby Mitchell. But the big surprise was in the Maine Legislature, as control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives appears to be going to the Republicans.
If these results hold, the Republicans will control the governorship and both houses of the Maine Legislature for the first time since 1964. Only time will tell what changes the new regime in Augusta will bring, but Maine is certain to see a more probusiness executive and legislative agenda than it has seen in the recent past.
Daniel C. Stockford is an editor of Maine Employment Law Letter and an attorney with Brann & Isaacson in Lewiston. He can be reached at (207) 786-3566 or dstockford@brannlaw.com.