WASHINGTON (AP) — Two things to know when it comes to Maine and Election Day: it's one of two states that uses ranked choice voting and one of two states that allocates its electoral votes by both statewide vote and congressional district.
What is ranked choice voting? In short, if no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, the candidate with the fewest number of votes is eliminated, and voters who chose that candidate as their top pick have their votes redistributed to their next choice. The process is repeated until one candidate has a majority of votes.
Along with Nebraska, Maine is one of two states that awards some of its electoral votes by congressional district rather than winner-takes-all. The winner of the statewide popular vote in Maine gets two electoral votes, and the state has favored Democratic presidential candidates since 1992. The state's remaining electoral votes are awarded based on the vote in each of Maine's two congressional districts.
In 2016 and 2020, the Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden, won the statewide vote and the vote in the 1st Congressional District. Republican former President Donald Trump won the 2nd Congressional District in both years.
Also on the ballot this year:
Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King, who caucuses with Democrats, faces a challenge in his bid for reelection from Democrat David Costello, Republican Demi Kouzounas and independent Jason Cherry. King was first elected to the Senate in 2012.
In the 2nd Congressional District, Democratic Rep. Jared Golden faces a competitive challenge from Republican Austin Theriault in his bid for a fourth term. The last time Golden ran for reelection in a presidential year, he received 53% of the district vote, while Trump received 52% in the presidential race.
The AP does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it has determined there is no scenario that would allow the trailing candidates to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.
Here’s a look at what to expect in the 2024 election in Maine:
Nov. 5.
8 p.m. ET.
Four total, including two awarded to the statewide winner and one each awarded to the winner of each of the state’s congressional districts.
President: Harris (D) vs. Trump (R) vs. Chase Oliver (Libertarian) vs. Jill Stein (Green) vs. Cornel West.
U.S. Senate: King (independent) vs. Costello (D) vs. Kouzounas (R) vs. Cherry (independent).
2nd Congressional District: Jared Golden (D) v. Austin Theriault (R).
Ballot measures: Question 5 (restore former state flag).
U.S. House, state Senate, state House and Sagadahoc County sheriff.
2020 (statewide): Biden (D) 53%, Trump (R) 44%, AP race call: Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, 3:05 a.m. ET.
2020 (2nd District): Trump (R) 52%, Biden (D) 45%.
Registered voters: 1,152,446 (as of July 8, 2024). About 34% Democrats, 28% Republicans and 32% independent.
Voter turnout in 2020 presidential election: 72% of registered voters.
Votes cast before Election Day 2020: about 63% of the total vote.
Votes cast before Election Day 2022: about 36% of the total vote.
Votes cast before Election Day 2024: See AP Advance Vote tracker.
First votes reported, Nov. 3, 2020: 8:16 p.m. ET.
By midnight ET: about 56% of total votes cast were reported.
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Associated Press writer Maya Sweedler contributed to this report.
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Read more about how U.S. elections work at Explaining Election 2024, a series from The Associated Press aimed at helping make sense of the American democracy. The AP receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP’s democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.