In the recent opinion of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court on ranked-choice voting, the justices referred to the “brave stand” taken by Joshua Chamberlain to amend the constitution of Maine to allow for the election of the governor by plurality vote. That amendment was a reaction to the outrage of voters in Maine over the process of electing their governor, and it manifested itself in great violence.

The voters of Maine expressed their clear outrage with our voting process in 2016 when they voted, by a substantial margin, to implement ranked-choice voting. The only difference between 2016 and 1880 was that in 2016, the outrage was manifested in the voting booth and not in the streets of Augusta.

The remedy for both instances of outrage is the same. It is time for our House and our Senate to make a “brave stand” and take the necessary steps to begin to amend the state constitution. Unless, of course, we have no Joshua Chamberlains left.

Cushing Samp

Saco

 


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