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2021 Maine legislative session

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2021 Maine legislative session
Seal of Maine.png
General information
Session start:    December 2, 2020

Session end:    March 30, 2021

Leadership
Senate President
Troy Dale Jackson (D)

House Speaker
Ryan Fecteau (D)
Majority Leader
Senate: Nathan L. Libby (D)
House: Michelle Dunphy (D)
Minority Leader
Senate: Jeff Timberlake (R)
House: Kathleen Dillingham (R)

Elections
Next Election:    November 8, 2022

Last Election:    November 3, 2020

Previous legislative sessions
2020 • 2019 • 2018
Other 2021 legislative sessions


In 2021, the Maine State Legislature was scheduled to convene on December 2, 2020, and adjourn on March 30, 2021.

The legislators serving in this session took office following the 2020 elections. Democrats won a 22-13 majority in the Senate and a 80-67 majority in the House. The party also controlled the governorship, creating a Democratic state government trifecta. At the start of the 2021 session, Maine was one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers.

The Maine State Legislature is responsible for redistricting following each census. Legislators were expected to address redistricting as part of the 2021 legislative session. As of the 2020 Census, Maine was one of 37 states where legislators were responsible for redistricting.

At the beginning of the 2021 legislative session:
  • Democrats held a majority in the Maine state House and state Senate.
  • Maine was one of 15 Democratic state government trifectas.
  • Maine's governor was Democrat Janet T. Mills.

    • Leadership in 2021

    Maine State Senate

    • Senate president: Troy Dale Jackson (D)
    • Majority leader: Nathan L. Libby (D)
    • Minority leader: Jeff Timberlake (R)

    Maine House of Representatives

    Partisan control in 2021

    See also: State government trifectas

    Maine was one of 15 Democratic state government trifectas at the start of 2021 legislative sessions. A state government trifecta occurs when one political party holds the governor's office, a majority in the state Senate, and a majority in the state House. For more information about state government trifectas, click here.

    Maine was also one of 28 state legislatures where neither party had a veto-proof supermajority in both chambers. Veto overrides occur when a legislature votes to reverse a veto issued by an executive such as a governor or the president. If one party has a majority in a state legislature that is large enough to override a gubernatorial veto without any votes from members of the minority party, it is called a veto-proof majority or, sometimes, a supermajority. To read more about veto-proof supermajorities in state legislatures, click here.

    The following tables show the partisan breakdown of the Maine State Legislature in the 2021 legislative session.

    Maine State Senate

    Party As of January 2021
         Democratic Party 22
         Republican Party 13
    Total 35

    Maine House of Representatives

    Party As of January 2021
         Democratic Party 80
         Republican Party 67
         Independent 4
    Total 151

    Regular session

    The following widget shows up to 25 pieces of legislation in the 2021 legislative session that most recently passed both chambers of the legislature, were signed by the governor, or were approved by the legislature in a veto override. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation met these criteria in 2021. This information is provided by BillTrack50.

    Redistricting

    See also: Redistricting in Maine after the 2020 census

    Redistricting is the process of enacting new district boundaries for elected offices, particularly for offices in the U.S. House of Representatives and state legislatures.

    To learn more about the redistricting process in Maine after the 2020 census, click here.

    Standing legislative committees

    See also: Standing committee and List of committees in Maine state government


    A standing committee of a state legislature is a committee that exists on a more-or-less permanent basis, from legislative session to session, that considers and refines legislative bills that fall under the committee's subject matter.

    At the beginning of the 2021 legislative session, there were 27 standing committees in Maine's state government, including 16 joint legislative committees, 5 state Senate committees, and 6 state House committees.

    Joint legislative committees

    Senate committees

    House committees

    Legislatively referred constitutional amendments

    In every state but Delaware, voter approval is required to enact a constitutional amendment. In each state, the legislature has a process for referring constitutional amendments before voters. In 18 states, initiated constitutional amendments can be put on the ballot through a signature petition drive. There are also many other types of statewide measures.

    The methods by which the Maine Constitution can be amended:

    See also: Part III of Article IV and Article X of Maine Constitution and Laws governing ballot measures in Maine
    687px-Flag of Maine.svg.png

    The Maine Constitution may be amended in two ways—through the legislative process, or a state constitutional convention. Maine residents cannot put a constitutional amendment on the ballot through the power of initiative. Maine does feature the power of initiative for initiated state statutes.

    Legislature

    See also: Legislatively referred constitutional amendment

    A two-thirds majority (66.67%) vote is required during one legislative session for the Maine State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 101 votes in the Maine House of Representatives and 24 votes in the Maine State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

    Convention

    See also: Convention-referred constitutional amendment

    According to Section 15 of Part III of Article IV, the legislature can, by a two-thirds concurrent vote of both branches, call a constitutional convention. Maine has never called such a convention; however, two "constitutional commissions" were impaneled, one in 1876 and one in 1962, but neither led to significant changes.


    Historical context: Between 1985 and 2020, the following occurred:

    • Ballots featured 146 ballot measures.
    • An average of five or six measures appeared on odd-year statewide ballots in Maine.
    • An average of one citizen-initiated statute appeared on odd-year statewide ballots in Maine.
    • Voters approved 78 percent (114 of 146) and rejected 28 percent (32 of 146) of the ballot measures.
    • Voters approved 40 percent (21 of 35) and rejected 60 percent (21 of 35) of the citizen-initiated statutes.
    Ballot measures in Maine, 1995-2020
    Type Total number Approved Percent approved Defeated Percent defeated Odd-year average Odd-year median Odd-year minimum Odd-year maximum
    All measures 146 114 78.1% 31 21.9% 5.9 6.0 2 9
    Initiated statutes 35 14 40.0% 21 60.0% 1.2 1.0 0 4
    Veto referendums 8 6 75.0% 2 25.0% 0.2 0.0 0 1
    Amendments 16 12 75.0% 4 25.0% 0.9 1.0 0 3
    Bond issues 83 80 96.4% 3 3.6% 3.4 4.0 0 6


    Historical partisan control

    The table below depicts the historical trifecta status of Maine.

    Maine Party Control: 1992-2025
    Fifteen years of Democratic trifectas  •  Two years of Republican trifectas
    Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
    Governor R R R I I I I I I I I D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D
    Senate D D D R R D D D D S S D D D D D D D D R R D D R R R R D D D D D D D
    House D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R D D D D D D D D D D D D D

    Historical Senate control

    Between 1992 and 2020, partisan control of the Maine State Senate fluctuated, swinging back and forth between the Democratic and Republican parties. Democrats regained control of the chamber after the 2018 elections. The table below shows the partisan history of the Maine State Senate following every general election from 1992 to 2020. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    Maine State Senate election results: 1992-2020

    Year '92 '94 '96 '98 '00 '02 '04 '06 '08 '10 '12 '14 '16 '18 '20
    Democrats 20 16 19 20 17* 18 18 18 20 14 21 15 17 21 22
    Republicans 15 18 15 14 17 17 17 17 15 20 13 20 18 14 13
    Other 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0

    *Chamber controlled by power-sharing agreement

    After elections from 1992 to 2020, the Democratic and Republican parties both claimed majorities, the largest being after 2020's elections when Democrats had a nine-seat advantage. From 1992 to 2020, neither Democrats nor Republicans held the 24 seats required to override a gubernatorial veto. Following the 2000 elections, the chamber was tied at 17-17 with one independent member. A power-sharing agreement was reached between Democrats and Republicans where Democrats held the top leadership position in 2001 and Republicans held the position in 2002.[1]

    Democrats held the state Senate from 2002 until the 2010 elections when Republicans gained five seats and took control of the chamber. Republicans lost their majority in the 2012 elections but regained control in the 2014 elections. In the 2016 elections, the Republican majority decreased from 20-15 to 18-17, and control of the chamber flipped again in 2018 when Democrats gained four seats, creating a 21-14 majority. Their majority increased to 22-13 following 2020's elections. The Republican gains in 2010 and 2014 were in line with a national trend toward Republican state legislatures during the presidency of Barack Obama (D). From 2009 to 2017, Democrats experienced losses in state legislative elections, totaling 968 seats altogether.

    Historical House control

    Between 1992 and 2020, the Maine House of Representatives was controlled by Democrats with the exception of two years when the chamber was controlled by Republicans. The table below shows the partisan history of the Maine House of Representatives following every general election from 1992 to 2020. All data from 2006 or earlier comes from Michael Dubin's Party Affiliations in the State Legislatures (McFarland Press, 2007). Data after 2006 was compiled by Ballotpedia staff.

    Maine House of Representatives election results: 1992-2020

    Year '92 '94 '96 '98 '00 '02 '04 '06 '08 '10 '12 '14 '16 '18 '20
    Democrats 90 77 81 79 88 80 76 89 96 72 86 79 77 89 80
    Republicans 61 74 69 71 63 67 73 60 54 78 61 68 72 57 67
    Other 0 0 1 1 1 4 2 2 1 1 4 4 2 5 4

    Between 1992 and 2020, majority control of the state House changed two times. Democrats held control of the chamber from 1992 to 2010 and have held it since the 2012 elections. During the periods of time that Democrats controlled the chamber, the number of seats that Democrats held fluctuated between 76 and 96 seats. Democrats had their largest majority following the 2008 elections when Democrats held a 42-seat advantage. From 1992 to 2020, neither Democrats or Republicans held more than the 101 seats required to override a gubernatorial veto.

    Republicans won control of the state House from Democrats in the 2010 elections. Republicans gained 23 seats in the election to hold a 78-72 majority with one independent member. Republicans held that majority until the 2012 elections when Democrats regained control of the chamber. Democrats gained 15 seats in the 2012 election to hold an 86-61 majority with four independent members. While Democrats have maintained control since the 2012 elections, Republicans slowly gained seats through 2016. The Republican gains from 2010 to 2016 were in line with a national trend toward Republican state legislatures during the presidency of Barack Obama (D). From 2009 to 2017, Democrats experienced losses in state legislative elections, totaling 968 seats altogether.

    See also

    Elections Maine State Government State Legislatures State Politics
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    Maine State Flag-Close Up.jpg
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    State Courts-Tile image.png

    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ NCSL, "IN CASE OF A TIE......," accessed February 11, 2021
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