Gay marriage campaigns push early Maine vote

As campaigns for and against repeal of Maine's gay marriage law urged their supporters to vote early, the state's top election official said Monday that turnout is on track to be far greater than in a typical off-year election.

No one could say for sure whether the gay marriage question has intensified interest in voting this fall, but "that's the lightning rod issue on the ballot," Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap said.

Mainers statewide can vote early by absentee ballot. In addition, voters in nine communities, as of Monday, had the option to cast ballots in an early voting pilot program, a streamlined form of absentee voting that saves local clerks paperwork.

Dana Turner, of Augusta, cast a ballot in city hall and had a definitive answer to what drew him out early: "To get it out of the way."

Based on the number of requests to town clerks for absentee ballots, Dunlap is forecasting a turnout of around 35 percent next Tuesday. That compares to 15-20 percent in a typical off-year election when state and federal offices are not being filled.

Campaigns on both sides of the gay marriage question took advantage of Maine's early voting by urging their supporters to cast ballots. Voters next week will decide whether to erase a state law enacted last May that recognizes same-sex marriage. The vote is prompted by a petition drive under Maine's people's veto provision.

"We feel a lot of our supporters know how important it is to get their votes banked early so they can volunteer on Election Day" on phones banks and other get-out-the-vote efforts, said Jesse Connolly, manager for the NO on 1/Protect Maine Equality campaign, which wants the law to stand.

Stand for Marriage Maine, which is leading the drive to repeal, was also encouraging its supporters to vote early, either by absentee or early voting if available in their towns, spokesman Scott Fish said.

With early voting, people cast ballots as they normally would in a voting machine, or in a ballot box, after being checked off the voter list. At the end of the day, the ballots are sealed and locked in a vault, eliminating much of the clerical work associated with absentee ballots.

This week, early voting will take place in Augusta, Bangor, Cumberland, Falmouth, Gorham, Hallowell, Saco, Scarborough and Standish.

Augusta officials said interest in early voting was high, with more than 70 casting ballots by early Monday afternoon. City Clerk Barbara Wardwell said a high number of absentee ballots had also been issued, but many voters appeared to be holding on to them longer than usual.

"It's anybody's guess as to why they haven't come back," said Wardwell, who guessed some voters are taking their time making choices on a ballot with a record number of questions. Besides gay marriage, voters must decide on two tax-curb proposals, one seeking repeal of a school consolidation law and one to bolster Maine's medical marijuana law.

Bangor was also seeing a heavy turnout of early voters and a big demand for absentee ballots, city clerk Patty DuBois said.

"For an off-year election, it's been projecting a 50-60 percent turnout, which is unheard of in an off-election year," DuBois said. She believes much of the interest has to do with the gay marriage question.

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