Maine state legislative special elections, 2026

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As of December, one special election has been called to fill a vacant seat in the Maine State Legislature.

Click here to read more about the special elections.

House special elections called:

How vacancies are filled in Maine


If there is a vacancy in the Maine State Legislature, a special election must be held to fill the vacant seat.[1][2] The governor must call for an election and inform political committees of the nomination deadline.[3][1][2] The person elected to the seat serves for the remainder of the unexpired term.[4]

DocumentIcon.jpg See sources: Maine Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 21-A, § 382 Maine Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 21-A, §366 and Maine Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 21-A, § 381


About the legislature

The Maine State Legislature is the state legislature of Maine. It is a bicameral body composed of the lower Maine House of Representatives and the upper Maine State Senate. The Legislature convenes at the State House in Augusta, where it has met since 1832.

The boxes below show the partisan composition of both chambers directly before and after the most recent general elections prior to 2026. For the most up-to-date numbers on partisan composition in this legislature, see here (Senate) and here (House).

Maine State Senate
Party As of November 5, 2024 After November 6, 2024
     Democratic Party 22 20
     Republican Party 13 15
Total 35 35


Maine House of Representatives
Party As of November 5, 2024 After November 6, 2024
     Democratic Party 79 75
     Republican Party 67 73
     Independent 1 1
     Unenrolled 0 1
     Independent for Maine Party 1 0
     Vacancy 3 1
Total 151 151

Special elections

Click [show] to the right of the district name for more information:

February 24, 2026

Historical data

There were 1,007 state legislative special elections that took place from 2010 to 2024. Maine held 22 special elections during the same time period. The largest number of special elections in Maine took place in 2011 when four special elections were held.

The table below details how many state legislative special elections were held in a state in a given year.

Special elections throughout the country

See also: State legislative special elections, 2026

As of December 2025, 24 state legislative special elections have been scheduled for 2026 in 14 states. Between 2011 and 2024, an average of 70 special elections took place each year.

Breakdown of 2026 special elections

In 2026, special elections for state legislative positions are being held for the following reasons:

  • 9 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
  • 12 due to resignation
  • 3 due to the death of the incumbent

Impact of special elections on partisan composition

The partisan breakdown for the special elections is as follows:

As of December 10th, 2025, Republicans controlled 55.33% of all state legislative seats nationally, while Democrats held 43.47%. Republicans held a majority in 57 chambers, and Democrats held the majority in 39 chambers. Two chambers (Alaska House and Alaska Senate) were organized under multipartisan, power-sharing coalitions. One chamber (Minnesota House of Representatives) was split evenly between both parties.

Partisan balance of all 7,386 state legislative seats
Legislative chamber Democratic Party Republican Party Grey.png Other Vacant
State senates 827 1,120 6 20
State houses 2,384 2,967 21 41
Total: 3,211

4,087

27

61


The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2026. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party won in the special elections.

Note: This table reflects information for elections that have been held and not the total number of vacant seats.

Partisan Change from Special Elections (2026)
Party As of Special Election After Special Election
     Democratic Party 13 0
     Republican Party 11 0
     Independent 0 0
Total 24 0

Flipped seats

In 2026, as of December, no seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections.


See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Maine Legislature, "Maine Revised Statutes," accessed February 11, 2021 (Statute 21A-381)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Maine Legislature, "Maine Revised Statutes," accessed February 11, 2021 (Statute 21A-382)
  3. ↑ Maine Legislature, "Constitution of the State of Maine," accessed February 11, 2021 (Article IV, Section 5)
  4. ↑ Maine Legislature, "Maine Revised Statutes," accessed February 11, 2021 (Statute 21A-361)
  5. ↑ Department of the Secretary of State of Maine, "Special election set for February 24 to fill House District 94 seat," December 1, 2025
  6. ↑ News From The States, "Lewiston representative resigns to take job in Senate president office," November 3, 2025
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