Maine Legislature, Session 129, LD 1477
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: COOPER, MIRAMANT

Legislative Document
No. 1477
H.P. 1079
House of Representatives, April 2, 2019
RESOLUTION, Proposing an Amendment to the Constitution of 
Maine To Facilitate the Use of Ranked-choice Voting for Governor 
and Members of the Legislature
Reference to the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative COOPER of Yarmouth.
Cosponsored by Senator MIRAMANT of Knox.
Constitutional amendment. Resolved: Two thirds of each branch of the 
Legislature concurring, that the following amendment to the Constitution of Maine be 
proposed:
Constitution, Art. IV, Pt. First, §5 is amended to read:
Section 5.  Election of Representatives; records of votes delivered 
forthwith; records of votes examined by Governor; summons of persons who 
appear to be elected; records shall be laid before the House.  The meetings 
within this State for the choice of Representatives shall be warned in due course of law by 
qualified officials of the several towns and cities 7 days at least before the election, and 
the election officials of the various towns and cities shall preside impartially at such 
meetings, and receive the votes of all the qualified electors, sort, count and declare them 
in.  Those officials shall, in open meeting; and a list of the persons voted for shall be 
formed, with the number of votes for each person against that person's name, form a 
record of the votes received.  Cities and towns belonging to any Representative District 
shall hold their meetings at the same time in the respective cities and towns; and such 
meetings shall be notified, held and regulated, the votes received, sorted, counted and 
declared and the record formed in the same manner.  Fair copies of the lists of votes 
records shall be attested and sealed by the municipal officers and the clerks of the cities 
and towns and the city and town clerks respectively shall cause the same to be delivered 
into the office of the Secretary of State forthwith.  The Governor shall examine the 
returned copies of such lists records, together with the ballots cast if the Governor so 
elects, and 7 days before the first Wednesday of December biennially, shall issue a 
summons to such persons as shall appear to have been elected by a plurality of all votes 
returned, to attend and take their seats.  All such lists records shall be laid before the 
House of Representatives on the first Wednesday of December biennially, and they shall 
finally determine who are elected.
Constitution, Art. IV, Pt. Second, §§3, 4 and 5 are amended to read:
Section 3.  Election of Senators; records of votes delivered forthwith.  The 
meetings within this State for the election of Senators shall be notified, held and regulated 
and the votes received, sorted, counted, declared and recorded, in the same manner as 
those for Representatives.  Fair copies of the lists records of votes shall be attested by the 
clerks of the cities and towns or other duly authorized officials and sealed up in open 
meetings and such officials shall cause said lists records to be delivered into the office of 
the Secretary of State forthwith.
Section 4.  Records of votes examined by Governor; summons to persons 
who appear to be elected.  The Governor shall, as soon as may be, examine the copies 
of such lists records, together with the ballots cast if the Governor so elects, and at least 7 
days before the said first Wednesday of December, issue a summons to such persons, as 
shall appear to be elected by a plurality of the votes in each senatorial district, to attend 
that day and take their seats.
Section 5.  Determination of Senators elected; procedure for filling 
vacancies.  The Senate shall, on said first Wednesday of December, biennially 
determine who is elected by a plurality of votes to be Senator in each district.  All 
vacancies in the Senate arising from death, resignation, removal from the State or like 
causes, and also vacancies, if any, which may occur because of the failure of any district 
to elect by a plurality of votes the Senator to which said district shall be entitled shall be 
filled by an immediate election in the unrepresented district.  The Governor shall issue a 
proclamation therefor and therein fix the time of such election.
Constitution, Art. IV, Pt. Third, §24 is enacted to read:
Section 24.  Elections by plurality or majority.  The Legislature, or the people 
acting pursuant to Section 18, shall predetermine by law whether the electors choose the 
Governor, Senators and Representatives by a plurality or majority of the votes.
Constitution, Art. V, Pt. First, §3 is amended to read:
Section 3.  Election; votes to be returned to Secretary of State; Secretary 
of State to lay records before the Senate and House of Representatives; 
provision in case of tie.  The meetings for election of Governor shall be notified, held 
and regulated and votes shall be received, sorted, counted and declared and recorded, in 
the same manner as those for Senators and Representatives.  Copies of lists records of 
votes shall be sealed and returned to the secretary's office in the same manner and at the 
same time as those for Senators and Representatives.  The Secretary of State for the time 
being shall, on the first Wednesday after the first Tuesday of January then next, lay the 
lists records returned to the secretary's office before the Senate and House of 
Representatives to be by them examined, together with the ballots cast if they so elect, 
and they shall determine the number of votes duly cast for the office of Governor, and in 
case of a choice by plurality of all of the votes returned they shall declare and publish the 
same.  If there shall be a tie between the 2 persons having the largest number of votes for 
Governor the final result of an election for Governor is a tie vote, the House of 
Representatives and the Senate meeting in joint session, and each member of said bodies 
having a single vote, shall elect one of said 2 the persons having so received an equal 
number of votes and the person so elected by the Senate and House of Representatives 
shall be declared the Governor.
Constitutional referendum procedure; form of question; effective date. 
Resolved:  That the municipal officers of this State shall notify the inhabitants of their 
respective cities, towns and plantations to meet, in the manner prescribed by law for 
holding a statewide election, at a statewide election held in the month of November 
following the passage of this resolution, to vote upon the ratification of the amendment 
proposed in this resolution by voting upon the following question:
"Do you favor amending the Constitution of Maine to allow the 
Legislature, or the people by using the direct initiative, to determine 
whether the Governor, State Senators and State Representatives are 
elected by a plurality or majority of the votes?"
The legal voters of each city, town and plantation shall vote by ballot on this question 
and designate their choice by a cross or check mark placed within the corresponding 
square below the word "Yes" or "No."  The ballots must be received, sorted, counted and 
declared in open ward, town and plantation meetings and returns made to the Secretary of 
State in the same manner as votes for members of the Legislature.  The Governor shall 
review the returns.  If it appears that a majority of the legal votes are cast in favor of the 
amendment, the Governor shall proclaim that fact without delay and the amendment 
becomes part of the Constitution of Maine on the date of the proclamation.
Secretary of State shall prepare ballots. Resolved: That the Secretary of State 
shall prepare and furnish to each city, town and plantation all ballots, returns and copies 
of this resolution necessary to carry out the purposes of this referendum.
SUMMARY
This resolution proposes an amendment to the Constitution of Maine to allow the 
Legislature, or the people by using the direct initiative, to determine whether the 
Governor, State Senators and State Representatives are elected by a plurality or majority 
of the votes.