(The Center Square) – Maine Democrats are seeking to counter efforts by Nebraska Republicans to radically change how the Midwestern state allocates its presidential electoral votes every four years.
A proposal being considered by the Maine Legislature would scrap the state’s method of allocating electoral votes by congressional district, but only if Nebraska – the only other state that splits districts – also makes the changes.
Democrats who filed the proposal say it’s aimed at deterring Nebraska lawmakers from making similar changes. They say if both states changed to a winner-take-all format, Maine would likely support Democratic presidential candidates and Nebraska’s electoral votes would likely go to the Republican candidate, diluting each state’s influence in presidential elections.
Maine has four electoral college votes, Nebraska five. They are two of 16 states that have five or fewer.
“If Nebraska abandons its current method of distributing electoral votes, Maine will become the focal point of an intense pressure campaign to do so as well,” state Rep. Kristen Cloutier, D-Lewiston, one of the bill’s sponsors, said in testimony. “This campaign would distract precious time and resources from the issues Mainers expect and deserve us to address.”
The plan is opposed by the conservative Maine Policy Institute, which calls the proposed legislation a “misguided attempt to undermine Maine’s thoughtful, representative method” of allocating electoral votes.
“It raises serious constitutional questions, invites future legal challenges, and weakens both electoral fairness and state sovereignty,” Harris Van Pate, the institute’s policy director, said in testimony.
Maine Republicans also oppose efforts to scrap the state’s split congressional district system, saying it would dilute GOP votes in a state where Democratic voters have a numerical advantage.
Nebraska Republicans were considering a proposal last week to put a question on the 2026 ballot asking voters to decide whether to become a winner-take-all state – with support from Gov. Jim Pillen – but it failed after two GOP lawmakers voted with Democrats to reject the plan.
Like Nebraska, Maine divides its four Electoral College votes between its two congressional districts, often splitting the vote in presidential elections.
In 2016, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump peeled away the largely rural 2nd Congressional District from Democrat Hillary Clinton, winning one electoral vote, while Clinton won the statewide race and the 1st District, giving her the state’s other three electoral votes.
Trump carried the 2nd District handily in the 2020 elections, cinching one of the state’s four electoral votes. The other three votes went to Democrat Joe Biden, who went on to win the presidency.
But in the 2024 election, Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris won the 1st Congressional District while Trump won the 2nd Congressional District. Trump won the election.
