A sign marks a polling site in Durham during the 2024 primary election on June 11. (Emma Davis/ Maine Morning Star)
Maine has seen a surge in online voter registration, with more than 10,000 voters using that method to register in September and already more than 5,000 so far in October.
Online voter registration is available through Tuesday. However, Maine has same day voter registration, so Mainers can register to vote and cast their ballot at the same time, including on Election Day, Nov. 5.
“Mainers have a lot of options for how to register to vote,” Secretary of State Shenna Bellows wrote in a statement shared Friday, “but online voter registration is an easy, convenient way for folks to register at their own convenience, and have one fewer thing on their to do list before casting a ballot.”
The online registration option can be used not only to register to vote for the first time in Maine but also to change party enrollment and update information on existing Maine voter registrations.
“We’ve already seen strong interest in online voter registration by Mainers to register for the first time, or to update an existing registration after a big life event,” Bellows wrote.
After steady online registration numbers of at least 1,000 per week in August and early September, a spike in registrations was seen the week of Sept. 9 with 5,760 registrations. That interest continued the next week with record usage of the online registration system during a national push for voter sign-up.
While dipping toward the end of September, the last two weeks have seen at least 5,000 online registrations per week. These numbers may also include duplicate registrations from Mainers who perhaps are not sure if they are currently registered and want to be certain.
When registering for the first time, Mainers must provide proof of residency and identity. Voters must be Maine residents, U.S. citizens and at least 16 years old, however only those who are 18 on or before Nov. 5 are able to cast a ballot. Current or former incarceration does not disqualify any Mainer from voting.
While online voter registration ends 21 days before Election Day, automatic voter registration during Bureau of Motor Vehicle transactions is still available until seven days before Election day, Oct. 29.
After that, registrations must be done in person at the voter’s municipality.
Maine does not have an online registration lookup tool, but Mainers can contact their municipal clerk’s office to confirm they are registered to vote and that their registration is up-to-date.
Before casting your vote, check out Maine Morning Star’s 2024 Voter Guide, which details the candidates and referendum questions on the ballot, as well as information about how to register to vote, all the different ways to vote and important deadlines.
Maine Morning Star is also rolling out a series that will compare the policy stances of Maine’s congressional candidates on a number of issues they could influence if elected. Check out the breakdown of the first issue: immigration.