Governor of Maine

Maine Governor
General information
Office Type:	Partisan
Office website:	Official Link
Term limits:	2 consecutive terms
Structure
Length of term:	4 years
Authority:	Maine Constitution, Article IV, Part I
Selection Method:	Elected
Current Officeholder
Name:	Paul LePage
Officeholder Party:	Republican
Assumed office:	January 5, 2011
Compensation:	$70,000
Elections
Next election:	November 4, 2014
Last election:	November 2, 2010
Other Maine Executive Offices
Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Auditor • Commissioner of Education • Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Commissioner • Superintendent of Insurance • Labor Commissioner • Public Utilities Commission

The Governor of the State of Maine is an elected Constitutional officer, the head of the Executive branch, and the highest state office in Maine. The Governor is popularly elected every four years by a plurality and is limited to two successive terms. There is not, however, a limit on the number of total terms a governor may serve.

Before Maine earned statehood in 1820, the governor of Massachusetts served as the state's top executive.

Current officer

The 74th and current officeholder is Republican Paul LePage, elected in 2010.

Authority

The state Constitution addresses the office of the governor in Article IV, Part I, the Executive Department.

Under Article IV, Part I, Section I:

The supreme executive power of this State shall be vested in a Governor.

Qualifications

Governors
Current Governors
Gubernatorial Elections
2013 • 2012 • 2011 • 2010 Lists of candidates
Current Lt. Governors
Lt. Governor Elections
2013 • 2012 • 2011 • 2010
Breaking news

A candidate for governor is required to be:

• at least 30 years of age
• a United States Citizen for at least 15 years
• a Maine resident for at least five years, resident of Maine at the time of election and during the term for which elected

During his/her tenure in office, a statewide elected official shall hold no other public office.

Elections

Maine elects governors in the midterm elections, that is, even years that are not Presidential election years. For Maine, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018 are all gubernatorial election years. Legally, the gubernatorial inauguration is always set for the first Tuesday in the January following an election. Thus, January 4, 2011 and January 6, 2015 are inaugural days.

Term limits

See also: States with gubernatorial term limits

Maine governors are restricted to two consecutive terms in office, after which they must wait one term before being eligible to run again.

Maine Constitution, Article V. -- Part First, Section 2

The person who has served 2 consecutive popular elective 4-year terms of office as Governor shall be ineligible to succeed himself or herself.

Vacancies

See also: How gubernatorial vacancies are filled

Details of vacancy appointments are addressed under Article IV, Sections 14 and 15.

Maine is one of five states that lack a formal office of the lieutenant governor. Instead, the first person in the line of succession is the President of the Senate. If the vacancy occurs more than 90 days ahead of the next scheduled primary election for a biennial general election, then a special election for the governorship shall be part of the ballot. Whoever wins that election will take office on the second Wednesday in January after the election.

If fewer than 90 days are left until a scheduled primary, the Senate President simply fill the remainder of the term. After the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and then the Secretary of State are next in line.

If mental health keeps the elected governor from discharging his office for more than six months, a super majority of both chambers of the legislature shall present a joint resolution to the Supreme Court, which will hold a hearing and issue a decision. When a physical or mental disability only causes a temporary inability to fulfill the requirements of the office, the same line of succession applies. The governor may declare herself temporarily unable to serve to the Chief Justice of the Maine Supreme Court.

Whenever any other officer is serving as the Acting Governor, he shall be paid only the salary of the governorship and shall vacate his other officer, leaving it to the legislature to appoint his successor.

Duties

The governor acts as commander-in-chief of "the army and navy of the State, and of the militia" (the Maine National Guard), "except when the same are called into the actual service of the United States."

The governor has the power to appoint officers, to appoint all judicial officers subject to confirmation except probate judges and justices of the peace if their manner of selection is otherwise provided for by the state constitution or by law, and to appoint and all other civil and military officers whose appointment is not by this constitution, or otherwise provided for by law.

The governor will have power to grant reprieves, commutations and pardons, unless impeached. The power to grant reprieves, commutations and pardons also includes juvenile offenses.

Other duties and privileges of the office include:

• Convening extraordinary sessions of the legislature, adjourning the legislature when necessary to so intervene, and moving the meeting place of the legislature under specific circumstances

• Requiring reports and information from any officer of the state or of the state's militia on any circumstances of their job

• Delivering information and recommending measures to the state's General Assembly from time to time

Compensation

See also: Comparison of gubernatorial salaries and Compensation of state executive officers

The governor's salary is legally fixed and may not be raised or decreased effective during the current term.

As of 2012, the Governor of Maine was paid an estimated $70,000. This figure comes from the Council of State Governments.

Contact information

Office of the Governor
1 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333-0001
Phone:207-287-3531
TTY:207-287-6548
Fax:207-287-1034

See also

• Maine Governor Paul LePage
• Maine Attorney General
• Maine Secretary of State

External links

• Office of the Governor of Maine

References

Portions of this article were adapted from Wikipedia.