List of People's Veto ballot measures in Maine

Ballot measures in Maine
Constitutional amendments
Citizen initiatives
Statutes referred by Legislature
Veto referenda
Laws • History

Maine voters are authorized in the Maine Constitution to use the process of veto referendum to challenge laws recently passed by the Maine State Legislature. In Maine, this process is known as the "People's Veto".

According to the laws governing the initiative & referendum process in Maine, the required number of valid signatures to put a People's Veto on the ballot is set at 10% of the number of votes cast for the office of Governor of Maine in the most recent gubernatorial election. Gubernatorial elections are held in Maine every four years; the most recent gubernatorial election was in 2010 when 572,766 total votes were cast for the office of governor.

Of the 29 People's Vetos that have been on the Maine ballot from 1910 through 2010, Maine voters have rejected 17 acts of the Maine legislature and upheld (or ratified) 12 statutes.

Total on ballot	Legislative acts ratified	Legislative acts rejected
29	12	17

List of veto referenda

See History of Initiative & Referendum in Maine and List of Maine ballot measures

Prior to 1998, when a People's Veto question appeared on the ballot, voters were asked if they wished a particular statute to become law. Starting in 1998, with Maine Sexual Orientation Discrimination People's Veto, Question 1, the standard form of the question on the ballot changed, and voters were asked not if they wanted to accept the law, but whether they wanted to reject it.

Consequently, starting in 1998, a "yes" vote is a vote to reject a law recently passed by the legislature, whereas prior to 1998, a "yes" vote was a vote to accept a recently enacted law.

The form of questions -- indicating whether a "yes" ratifies or rejects -- from 1910-1934 is not listed on the main documentary source for information about the People's Veto in Maine, which is the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library. The chart below assumes that throughout that time, a "yes" vote was a ratification, since that was the pattern for the next sixty years.

#	Year	Description	Approve	Reject	Outcome
1	1910	An Act to Make Uniform the Standard Relating to the Percentage of Alcohol in Intoxicating Liquors	31,093	40,475	Act vetoed
2	1910	An Act to Divide the Town of York and Establish the Town of Gorges	19,692	34,722	Act vetoed
3	1910	An Act Relating to the Reconstruction of Portland Bridge	21,251	29,851	Act vetoed
4	1912	An Act to Provide for the Use of Uniform Ballot Boxes and the Preservation of ballot Cast at Elections	72,816	33,884	Act ratified
5	1914	An Act to Create a Public Utilities Commission	67,635	37,008	Act ratified
6	1916	An Act Relative to the Hours of Employment of Women and Minors	95,591	40,252	Act ratified
7	1920	An Act Granting to Women the Right to Vote for Presidential Electors	88,080	30,462	Act ratified
8	1922	An Act to Provide for a Full Time State Highway Commission	56,822	60,258	Act vetoed
9	1925	An Act Relating to Standard Time	34,414	28,454	Act ratified
10	1925	Act to Define Certain Grades of Milk Offered for Sale Within the State	19,607	38,056	Act vetoed
11	1928	An Act Relating to the Excise Tax on Railroads	119,762	52,350	Act ratified
12	1929	Gas tax increase	35,258	79,673	Act vetoed
13	1931	An Act Relating to the Administration of the State	41,077	30,368	Act ratified
14	1932	Gas tax increase	24,008	195,922	Act vetoed
15	1934	An Act Relating to Transportation of Intoxicating Liquor	141,259	82,877	Act ratified
16	1936	An Act Relative to Resident Fishing and Hunting Licenses	132,400	113,634	Act ratified
17	1940	An Act Relating to Elections in the City of Biddeford	70,412	70,226	Act ratified
18	1940	An Act to Provide a Police Commission for the City of Biddeford	69,933	67,179	Act ratified
19	1941	An Act Imposing an Additional Gasoline Tax	14,520	32,131	Act vetoed
20	1958	An Act Increasing Registration Fees for Motor Vehicles and Operators' Licenses	22,495	106,840	Act vetoed
21	1958	An Act Relating to Registration Fees on Certain Commercial Vehicles	22,495	106,840	Act vetoed
22	1966	An Act Relating to Sunday Sale of Liquor	101,086	102,392	Act vetoed
23	1974	An Act to Change Weights and related Provisions for Commercial Vehicles	123,501	197,946	Act vetoed
24	1980	An Act to Amend the Laws Relating to Games of Chance	14,520	32,131	Act vetoed
25	1998	An Act to Prevent Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation	145,452	138,135	Act vetoed
26	2005	An Act To Extend Civil Rights Protections to All People Regardless of Sexual Orientation	181,926	223,274	Act ratified
27	2008	An Act To Continue Maine 's Leadership in Covering the Uninsured (Dirigo Tax)	462,818	253,026	Act vetoed
28	2009	Same-Sex Marriage People's Veto, Question 1	300,848	267,828	Act vetoed
29	2010	Tax Code People's Veto, Question 1	193,960	124,928	Act vetoed

See also

• List of Maine ballot measures
• List of amendments to the Maine Constitution

External links

• List of all People's Vetoes from 1909-present.
• Maine People's Veto Process