A voter walks by a ballot box outside Portland City Hall on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024. (Photo by Lauren McCauley/ Maine Morning Star)
Eleven races for the Maine Legislature are being recounted, starting Friday and continuing through Nov. 25.
Maine law does not require recounts, but candidates can request one. Candidates do not have to pay a deposit if the races are very close — 1% or less of the apparent margin of victory.
Of the recounts requested, two were for state Senate races — Senate districts 8 and 15 — and nine were for Maine House of Representative races: House districts 96, 98, 81, 58, 75, 52, 44, 142 and 141.
Several of the races are very close and could determine who controls the Maine House of Representatives, or the margin of power held by Democrats in the Senate.
The schedule laid out by the Office of the Secretary of State has the first legislative recount on Friday, between Kerryl Clement and Michel Lajoie in House District 96. They continue throughout next week and conclude on Nov. 25, between Senate District 15 candidates Richard Bradstreet and Raegan LaRochelle.
The recounts are taking place in the Florian Room at 45 Commerce Drive, in Augusta, which also houses Maine State Police headquarters.
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What the recounts mean for the balance of power
As it stands, Democrats are poised to maintain their trifecta of power between the governor’s office and both chambers in the 132nd Maine Legislature.
Every race has not yet been called by The Associated Press, but enough to confirm Democratic control of the Maine Senate. The Maine House Democratic Campaign Committee said last week it was still waiting on one race to be called to confirm a majority in the lower chamber. Results collected by the House committee as well as its counterpart in the Senate show at least a 76- to 72-seat majority in the House and a 20- to 14-seat majority in the Senate.
Results of the recounts could shift those margins slightly.
Even though Democrats will retain the control they’ve held since 2018, Republicans were able to make headway by flipping districts in both chambers and even unseating a few incumbents.
In the Senate, Republicans were also successful at defending a few open seats that Democrats targeted.
Last updated: 11:12 am