Maine State Senate elections, 2010

2010 State senate elections
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Parties with candidates
Impact of term limits
Successful challengers
Defeated incumbents
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State legislative elections

	2012 → ← 2008
	Maine State Senate elections, 2010
	Majority control • Campaign contributions
	Qualifications • Competitiveness analysis
	State Legislative Election Results
	List of candidates District 1 • District 2 • District 3 • District 4 • District 5 • District 6 • District 7 • District 8 • District 9 • District 10 • District 11 • District 12 • District 13 • District 14 • District 15 • District 16 • District 17 • District 18 • District 19 • District 20 • District 21 • District 22• District 23 • District 24 • District 25 • District 26 • District 27 • District 28 • District 29 • District 30 • District 31 • District 32 • District 33 • District 34 • District 35
	Maine State Senate; State legislative elections, 2010

Elections for the office of Maine State Senate were held in Maine on November 2, 2010. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 15 for party candidates and June 1 for others. The primary election day was on June 8, 2010.

Maine's state senators are elected to two-year terms. They are subject to term limits of no more than four consecutive two-year terms.

Of the 35 districts, incumbents ran in 26 of them. In the remaining nine districts, four incumbents were ineligible to run because of term limits.

As a result of the election, Democrats lost control of the Senate. Republicans gained a six-seat majority.

See also: Maine State Senate and State legislative elections, 2010

November 2 General Election Results

The following candidates won election on November 2, 2010:

Majority control

See also: Partisan composition of state senates

Heading into the November 2 election, the Democratic Party held the majority in the Maine State Senate:

Maine State Senate
Party		As of November 1, 2010	After the 2010 Election
	Democratic Party	20	14
	Republican Party	15	20
	Independent	0	1
Total		35	35

Term limits

See also: State legislatures with term limits

The Maine State Senate has been a term-limited state senate since Maine voters approved Question 1 in 1993. Under this law, state senators can serve no more than four consecutive 2-year terms. The Maine State Legislature tried, unsuccessfully, in 2007 to get the state's voters to extend the number of years they could consecutively serve in office by putting the Maine Term Limits Extension act on the ballot. Voters overwhelmingly (67-33%) rejected it.

There are 35 Maine State Senators. In 2010, four incumbents were ineligible to run for the Senate again in November. They were:

Democrats (2):

Republicans (2):

Campaign contributions

See also: State-by-state comparison of donations to state senate campaigns

This chart shows how many candidates ran for state senate in Maine in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in state senate races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests. All figures come from Follow The Money.^[1]

Year	Number of candidates	Total contributions
2010	88	$1,988,888
2008	90	$1,854,105
2006	89	$1,990,662
2004	90	$2,095,278
2002	87	$1,323,033

In 2010, the candidates who ran for the state Senate raised a total of $1,988,888 in campaign contributions. The top 10 donors were:^[2]

Donor	Amount
Public Fund	$1,809,803
Nadeau, James A	$8,386
Schweitzer, Daniel J	$3,810
James A Nadeau/Loan Forgiven, $000 balance	$3,500
Whalen, Francis J	$3,194
Maine Association of Realtors	$2,150
Millercoors	$1,900
Maine Dental Association	$1,800
Bangor Historic Track	$1,750
Maine Credit Union League	$1,650

Incumbency

Unopposed incumbents

No incumbents faced opposition in the November 2 general election.

Primary challenges

No eligible incumbent lost in the primary. The following 25 incumbents (15 Democrats, 10 Republicans) won their primaries:

District 3: Incumbent Republican Jonathan Courtney
District 4: Incumbent Democrat Nancy Sullivan
District 5: Incumbent Democrat Barry Hobbins
District 6: Incumbent Democrat Philip Bartlett
District 7: Incumbent Democrat Lawrence Bliss
District 8: Incumbent Democrat Justin Alfond
District 9: Incumbent Democrat Joseph Brannigan
District 10: Incumbent Democrat Stan Gerzofsky
District 11: Incumbent Republican Gerald Davis
District 12: Incumbent Democrat Bill Diamond
District 13: Incumbent Republican David Hastings
District 15: Incumbent Democrat Deborah Simpson
District 16: Incumbent Democrat Margaret Craven
District 17: Incumbent Democrat John Nutting
District 19: Incumbent Democrat Seth Goodall
District 20: Incumbent Republican David Trahan
District 21: Incumbent Republican Earle McCormick
District 22: Incumbent Republican Christopher Rector
District 29: Incumbent Republican Kevin Raye
District 30: Incumbent Democrat Elizabeth Schneider
District 31: Incumbent Republican Richard Rosen
District 32: Incumbent Democrat Joseph Perry
District 33: Incumbent Republican Debra Plowman
District 34: Incumbent Republican Roger Sherman
District 35: Incumbent Democrat Troy Dale Jackson

Retiring incumbents

Ten incumbent senators did not run for re-election, while 25 incumbents (71%) ran for re-election. Of the 10 incumbents who did not seek re-election, 5 were Democrats and 5 were Republicans.

Incumbents who retired were:

District 1: Incumbent Democrat Peter Bowman
District 2: Incumbent Republican Richard Nass
District 14: Incumbent Democrat Bruce Bryant
District 18: Incumbent Republican Walter Gooley
District 23: Incumbent Republican Carol Weston
District 24: Incumbent Democrat Elizabeth Mitchell
District 25: Incumbent Democrat Lisa Marrache
District 26: Incumbent Republican Peter Mills
District 27: Incumbent Republican Doug Smith
District 28: Incumbent Democrat Dennis Damon

Qualifications

Section 6 of Part 2 of Article 4 of the Maine Constitution states, "The Senators shall be 25 years of age at the commencement of the term, for which they are elected, and in all other respects their qualifications shall be the same as those of the Representatives."

Section 4 of Part 1 of Article 4 of the Maine Constitution states, "Qualifications; residency requirement. No person shall be a member of the House of Representatives, unless the person shall, at the commencement of the period for which the person is elected, have been 5 years a citizen of the United States, have arrived at the age of 21 years, have been a resident in this State one year; and for the 3 months next preceding the time of this person's election shall have been, and, during the period for which elected, shall continue to be a resident in the district which that person represents."

List of candidates

District 1

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Dawn Hill 2,528 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Michael Estes 1,548 a
Sarah Lewin 1,545

Note: Incumbent Peter Bowman (D) did not seek re-election, although he was eligible to do so under Maine's term limits.

November 2 General election candidates:

Dawn Hill 8,623

Michael Estes 7,849

District 2

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Richard Burns 2,221 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Ronald Collins 2,844 a

Note: Incumbent Richard Nass (R) was not eligible to seek re-election under Maine's term limits.

November 2 General election candidates:

Richard Burns 6,769

Ronald Collins 8,591

District 3

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Robert Stackpole 2,334 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Jonathan Courtney 2,416 a Incumbent Courtney was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

November 2 General election candidates:

Robert Stackpole 5,758

Jonathan Courtney 8,586

District 4

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Nancy Sullivan 3,566 a Incumbent Sullivan was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Owen Pickus 2,096 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Nancy Sullivan 8,449

Owen Pickus 7,391

District 5

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Barry Hobbins 3,414 a Incumbent Hobbins was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

June 8 GOP primary result:

John Cushing 2,390 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Barry Hobbins 9,324

John Cushing 6,976

District 6

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Philip Bartlett 2,891 a Incumbent Bartlett was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Benjamin Gilman 2,811 Note: Gilman officially withdrew his candidacy on June 18, 2010.
Matthew Mattingly a

November 2 General election candidates:

Philip Bartlett 8,724

Matthew Mattingly 7,942

District 7

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Lawrence Bliss 4,303 a Incumbent Bliss was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Joseph Palmieri 2,875 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Note: A recount has confirmed Bliss' lead.^[3]

Lawrence Bliss 9,172

Joseph Palmieri 9,097

District 8

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Justin Alfond 4,037 a Incumbent Alfond was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Peter Doyle 885 a

June 8 Green Independent primary result:

Kelsey Perchinski 182 a Note: Perchinski officially withdrew from the race.

November 2 General election candidates:

Justin Alfond 10,667

Peter Doyle 2,908

District 9

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Joseph Brannigan 3,848 a Incumbent Brannigan was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2006.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Jeffrey Martin 1,795 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Joseph Brannigan 9,603

Jeffrey Martin 5,833

District 10

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Stan Gerzofsky 3,968 a Incumbent Gerzofsky was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Matthew Cartmell 2,582 a Note: Cartmell officially withdrew from the race.
Thomas Scott Scott replaced Cartmell on the Republican ballot.

November 2 General election candidates:

Stan Gerzofsky 10,168

Thomas Scott 6,418

District 11

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Cynthia Bullens 4,048 a Note: Bullens officially withdrew her candidacy on September 15, 2010, but her name remained on the ballot.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Gerald Davis 4,840 a Incumbent Davis was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 Green Independent primary result:

Christopher Miller 122 a

Independent candidate:

Richard Woodbury a

November 2 General election candidates:

Cynthia Bullens 2,472

Gerald Davis 7,963

Christopher Miller 897

Richard Woodbury 9,029

District 12

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Bill Diamond 2,818 a Incumbent Diamond was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Ann-Marie Grenier 3,006 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Bill Diamond 10,063

Ann-Marie Grenier 6,667

District 13

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Laura Ordway 2,408 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

David Hastings 3,977 a Incumbent Hastings was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

November 2 General election candidates:

Laura Ordway 7,554

David Hastings 9,854

District 14

June 8 Democratic primary result:

John Patrick 3,015 a
Daniel Smiley 1,033

June 8 GOP primary result:

H. Sawin Millett, Jr. 2,856 a

Note: Incumbent Bruce Bryant (D) was not eligible to seek re-election under Maine's term limits.

November 2 General election candidates:

John Patrick 9,143

H. Sawin Millett, Jr. 7,342

District 15

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Deborah Simpson 2,832 a Incumbent Simpson was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Lois Snowe Mello 3,030 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Deborah Simpson 7,362

Lois Snowe Mello 8,467

District 16

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Margaret Craven 3,828 a Incumbent Craven was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Joel Kase 1,512 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Margaret Craven 6,286

Joel Kase 5,400

District 17

June 8 Democratic primary result:

John Nutting 3,035 a Incumbent Nutting was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Garrett Mason 1,975 a
Russell Pack 1,432

November 2 General election candidates:

John Nutting 7,153

Garrett Mason 9,027

District 18

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Ann Woloson 3,063 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Thomas Saviello 4,325 a

Note: Incumbent Walter Gooley (R) did not seek re-election, although he was eligible to do so under Maine's term limits.

November 2 General election candidates:

Ann Woloson 6,703

Thomas Saviello 11,194

District 19

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Seth Goodall 3,901 a Incumbent Goodall was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 GOP primary result:

David Kaler 3,672 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Seth Goodall 9,588

David Kaler 8,335

District 20

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Christopher Johnson 2,925 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

David Trahan 4,831 a Incumbent Trahan was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

Independent candidate:

Daniel Schweitzer a

November 2 General election candidates:

Christopher Johnson 6,178

David Trahan 10,909

Daniel Schweitzer 1,794

District 21

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Nancy Smith 3,550 a Note: Smith withdrew her candidacy later in June.

June 29 Democratic caucus result:^[4]

Patrice Putman a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Earle McCormick 3,851 a Incumbent McCormick was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2006.

November 2 General election candidates:

Patrice Putman 6,656

Earle McCormick 11,298

District 22

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Adrian Humphreys 2,937 a Note: Humphreys officially withdrew her candidacy on July 19, 2010.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Christopher Rector 3,585 a Incumbent Rector was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

November 2 General election candidates:

Christopher Rector 13,000

District 23

June 8 Democratic primary result:

John Piotti 2,582 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Michael Thibodeau 3,466 a

Note: Incumbent Carol Weston (R) was not eligible to seek re-election under Maine's term limits.

November 2 General election candidates:

John Piotti 7,903

Michael Thibodeau 9,365

District 24

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Patsy Crockett 3,027 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Roger Katz 3,065 a

Note: Incumbent Elizabeth Mitchell (D) did not seek re-election, although she was eligible to do so under Maine's term limits. Mitchell ran for governor in 2010.

November 2 General election candidates:

Patsy Crockett 5,803

Roger Katz 10,239

District 25

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Lisa Marrache 3,027 a Note: Incumbent Marrache filed for re-election and was re-nominated by the Democrats but withdrew her candidacy later that month.

July 6 Democratic caucus result:^[5]

Pamela Trinward 86 a
Peter Garrett 28

June 8 GOP primary result:

Thomas Martin, Jr. 2,313 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Pamela Trinward 6,398

Thomas Martin, Jr. 7,462

District 26

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Gerald York 2,442 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Rodney Whittemore 2,992 a

Note: Incumbent Peter Mills (R) did not seek re-election, although he was eligible to do so under Maine's term limits, but instead ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for governor.

November 2 General election candidates:

Gerald York 5,046

Rodney Whittemore 9,087

District 27

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Susan Mackey Andrews 2,486 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Douglas Thomas 3,690 a

Note: Incumbent Douglas Smith (R) did not seek re-election, although he was eligible to do so under Maine's term limits.

November 2 General election candidates:

Susan Mackey Andrews 6,271

Douglas Thomas 8,908

District 28

June 8 Democratic primary result:

James Schatz 2,084 a
Lawrence Greenlaw, Jr. 1,542

June 8 GOP primary result:

Brian Langley 3,885 a

June 8 Green Independent primary result:

Lynne Williams 158 a

Note: Incumbent Dennis Damon (D) was not eligible to seek re-election under Maine's term limits.

November 2 General election candidates:

James Schatz 6,420

Brian Langley 9,633

Lynne Williams 2,311

District 29

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Patricia Sharp 1,600 Note: Patricia Sharp officially withdrew her candidacy on June 14, 2010.
F. James Whalen a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Kevin Raye 3,327 a Incumbent Raye was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

November 2 General election candidates:

F. James Whalen 3,967

Kevin Raye 9,927

District 30

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Elizabeth Schneider 2,512 a Incumbent Schneider was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Traci Gauthier 2,091 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Elizabeth Schneider 7,767

Traci Gauthier 5,668

District 31

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Paul Liebow 2,410 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Richard Rosen 3,835 a Incumbent Rosen was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

November 2 General election candidates:

Paul Liebow 5,893

Richard Rosen 10,776

District 32

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Joseph Perry 2,250 a Incumbent Perry was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Nichi Farnham 2,436 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Joseph Perry 5,724

Nichi Farnham 7,394

District 33

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Sherman Leighton 1,983 a

June 8 GOP primary result:

Debra Plowman 3,932 a Incumbent Plowman was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2004.

November 2 General election candidates:

Sherman Leighton 5,116

Debra Plowman 11,360

District 34

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Alan Lindquist 1,582 a Note: Lindquist officially withdrew from the race.
Patrick Gordon Gordon replaced Lindquist on the Democratic ticket.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Roger Sherman 2,946 a Incumbent Sherman was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2006.

November 2 General election candidates:

Roger Sherman 8,038

Patrick Gordon 5,104

District 35

June 8 Democratic primary result:

Troy Dale Jackson 3,174 a Incumbent Jackson was first elected to the Maine Senate in 2008.

June 8 GOP primary result:

Daniel Deveau 1,813 a

November 2 General election candidates:

Troy Dale Jackson 7,525

Daniel Deveau 5,620

External links

Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Maine State Senate

Leadership

Senate President:Matthea Daughtry

Majority Leader:Teresa Pierce

Minority Leader:Harold Stewart

Senators

District 1

Susan Bernard (R)

District 2

Harold Stewart (R)

District 3

Bradlee Farrin (R)

District 4

Stacey Guerin (R)

District 5

Russell Black (R)

District 6

Marianne Moore (R)

District 7

Nicole Grohoski (D)

District 8

Mike Tipping (D)

District 9

Joe Baldacci (D)

District 10

David Haggan (R)

District 11

Glenn Curry (D)

District 12

Anne Beebe-Center (D)

District 13

Cameron Reny (D)

District 14

Craig Hickman (D)

District 15

Richard Bradstreet (R)

District 16

Scott Cyrway (R)

District 17

Jeffrey Timberlake (R)

District 18

Richard Bennett (R)

District 19

Joseph Martin (R)

District 20

Bruce Bickford (R)

District 21

Margaret Rotundo (D)

District 22

James Libby (R)

District 23

Matthea Daughtry (D)

District 24

Denise Tepler (D)

District 25

Teresa Pierce (D)

District 26

Timothy Nangle (D)

District 27

Jill Duson (D)

District 28

Rachel Talbot Ross (D)

District 29

Anne Carney (D)

District 30

Stacy Brenner (D)

District 31

Donna Bailey (D)

District 32

Henry Ingwersen (D)

District 33

Matthew Harrington (R)

District 34

Joseph Rafferty (D)

District 35

Mark Lawrence (D)

Democratic Party (20)

Republican Party (15)

[1] Follow the Money, Maine

[2] Follow the Money: "Maine Senate 2010 Campaign Contributions"

[3] Maine Official Recount Results

[4] "Dems select Putnam to run for Senate" Kennebec Journal 7/1/2010

[5] "Democrats tap Trinward" Kennebec Journal, 7/6/2010 (dead link)

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

Maine State Senate elections, 2010

November 2 General Election Results

Majority control

Term limits

Campaign contributions

Incumbency

Unopposed incumbents

Primary challenges

Retiring incumbents

Qualifications

List of candidates

District 1

District 2

District 3

District 4

District 5

District 6

District 7

District 8

District 9

District 10

District 11

District 12

District 13

District 14

District 15

District 16

District 17

District 18

District 19

District 20

District 21

District 22

District 23

District 24

District 25

District 26

District 27

District 28

District 29

District 30

District 31

District 32

District 33

District 34

District 35

See also

External links

Footnotes

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