Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Teresa Pierce
2022 - Present
2026
2
Teresa Pierce (Democratic Party) is a member of the Maine State Senate, representing District 25. She assumed office on December 6, 2022. Her current term ends on December 1, 2026.
Pierce was elected Maine Senate majority leader in November 2024.[1] After the election Pierce said, “Over our next two years, Maine Senate Democrats will work together to improve all Mainers’ lives. This means creating opportunity in the face of potential hardship. This means a good-paying job, an education, a home and a community.”[1]
Pierce earned a bachelor's degree in political science and public policy from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1985.[2] Pierce served as a Falmouth Town Councilor for six years, including serving for two years as its chair.[3] Pierce's other career experience includes working as the Associate Director of Alumni Advancement at the University of New England and for other nonprofit organizations.[4]
Pierce served in the Maine House of Representatives from 2014-2022. In 2014, Pierce defeated Gregory Payeur (R) 48.9%-46% in the general election for District 44. She was re-elected in 2016, 2018, 2020. During the 128th Maine Legislature from 2016-2017, Pierce was the House chair of the Joint Select Committee on Marijuana Legalization Implementation, which was tasked with reviewing marijuana-related legislation and helping state agencies create rules and regulations for the marijuana industry. The committee was formed after voters approved Question 1 50.3%-49.7% legalizing recreational marijuana use for adults over the age of 21. Click here to learn more about that ballot measure. [4][5] During the 2021-2022 legislative session, Pierce was chair of the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee, which writes the state budget. In 2021, Pierce also sponsored a bill that became law to allow online voter registration in Maine.[6]
In 2022, Pierce was elected to the state Senate to represent District 25. In that election, she defeated, Jennifer White (R) 63.4%-36.6%. During her first term in the Senate, Pierce was the lead sponsor of Maine Question 2, a legislatively referred bond issue that authorized $25 million in general obligation bonds to the Maine Technology Institute for research, development, and commercialization of Maine-based public and private institutions in support of technological innovation. Voters approved Question 2 54.3%-45.7% on November 5, 2024. When she introduced the bill in April 2023, Pierce said, "Our state is at an inflection point. If we are to remain competitive in a rapidly growing economy, the time to invest in and expand our industries is now."[7]
Biography
Teresa Pierce lives in Falmouth, Maine.[8] Pierce earned a B.A. in political science and public policy from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1985. Her career experience includes working as the associate director of alumni advancement of the University of New England and a consultant with The Trust for Public Land. Pierce served on the Falmouth Town Council and volunteered with the Maine College of Art.[9]
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.
2023-2024
Pierce was assigned to the following committees:
2021-2022
Pierce was assigned to the following committees:
2019-2020
Pierce was assigned to the following committees:
- Government Oversight Committee (decommissioned)
- Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee
- Leaves of Absence Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Maine committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Leaves of Absence |
| • Education and Cultural Affairs |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Pierce served on the following committees:
| Maine committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Education and Cultural Affairs |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2024
See also: Maine State Senate elections, 2024
General election
General election for Maine State Senate District 25
Incumbent Teresa Pierce defeated James Read in the general election for Maine State Senate District 25 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Teresa Pierce (D) | 64.5 | 17,896 |
| James Read (R) | 35.5 | 9,835 | ||
| Total votes: 27,731 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic Primary for Maine State Senate District 25
The following candidates advanced in the ranked-choice voting election: Teresa Pierce in round 1 .
|
Total votes: 4,970 |
|||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican Primary for Maine State Senate District 25
The following candidates advanced in the ranked-choice voting election: James Read in round 1 .
|
Total votes: 2,508 |
|||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Pierce in this election.
2022
See also: Maine State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Maine State Senate District 25
Teresa Pierce defeated Jennifer White in the general election for Maine State Senate District 25 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Teresa Pierce (D) | 63.4 | 15,315 |
 | Jennifer White (R) | 36.6 | 8,845 | |
| Total votes: 24,160 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic Primary for Maine State Senate District 25
The following candidates advanced in the ranked-choice voting election: Teresa Pierce in round 1 .
|
Total votes: 3,634 |
|||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican Primary for Maine State Senate District 25
The following candidates advanced in the ranked-choice voting election: Jennifer White in round 1 .
|
Total votes: 1,759 |
|||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
2020
See also: Maine House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Maine House of Representatives District 44
Incumbent Teresa Pierce won election in the general election for Maine House of Representatives District 44 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Teresa Pierce (D) | 100.0 | 5,431 |
| Total votes: 5,431 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic Primary for Maine House of Representatives District 44
The following candidates advanced in the ranked-choice voting election: Teresa Pierce in round 1 .
|
Total votes: 1,860 |
|||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
2018
General election
General election for Maine House of Representatives District 44
Incumbent Teresa Pierce defeated Sarah Sandlin and Kathryn Schrock in the general election for Maine House of Representatives District 44 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Teresa Pierce (D) | 59.4 | 3,474 |
| Sarah Sandlin (R) | 35.7 | 2,090 | ||
| Kathryn Schrock (G) | 4.9 | 288 | ||
| Total votes: 5,852 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Maine House of Representatives District 44
Incumbent Teresa Pierce advanced from the Democratic primary for Maine House of Representatives District 44 on June 12, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Teresa Pierce | 100.0 | 1,468 |
| Total votes: 1,468 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Maine House of Representatives District 44
Sarah Sandlin advanced from the Republican primary for Maine House of Representatives District 44 on June 12, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Sarah Sandlin | 100.0 | 771 | |
| Total votes: 771 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
Elections for the Maine House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 14, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 15, 2016.[10]
Incumbent Teresa Pierce defeated Kimberly Diamond in the Maine House of Representatives District 44 general election.[11]
| Maine House of Representatives, District 44 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Teresa Pierce Incumbent |
57.53% | 3,586 | |
| Republican | Kimberly Diamond | 42.47% | 2,647 | |
| Total Votes | 6,233 | |||
| Source: Maine Secretary of State | ||||
Incumbent Teresa Pierce ran unopposed in the Maine House of Representatives District 44 Democratic primary.[12][13]
| Maine House of Representatives, District 44 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Teresa Pierce Incumbent (unopposed) | |
Erin Mancini ran unopposed in the Maine House of Representatives District 44 Republican primary.[12][13]
| Maine House of Representatives, District 44 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Erin Mancini (unopposed) | |
2014
Elections for the Maine House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on June 10, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for party candidates wishing to run in this election was March 17, 2014. The deadline for write-in candidates to run in the primary election was April 28, 2014, and the deadline for non-party candidates to run in the general election was June 2, 2014. The deadline for write-in candidates to run in the general election was September 22, 2014. Teresa Pierce was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Gregory Payeur was unopposed in the Republican primary. Pierce defeated Payeur in the general election.[14][15][16][17]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Teresa Pierce |
48.9% | 2,594 | |
| Republican | Gregory Payeur | 46% | 2,440 | |
| None | Blank Votes | 5.1% | 271 | |
| Total Votes | 5,305 | |||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Teresa Pierce did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Teresa Pierce did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Teresa Pierce did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2014
Pierce's website highlighted the following campaign themes:
| “ | - Education: Invest in early education; ensure access and affordability to Maine’s colleges and universities, support and train educators for the 21st century.
- Economy: Rebuild Maine’s roads and bridges, create opportunities for Maine businesses to grow; encourage and support new businesses coming to Maine. - Environment: Protect Maine’s unique and beautiful environment while encouraging our natural resource-based economy.[18][19] |
” |
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Maine scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2024
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2024, the Maine State Legislature was in session from January 3 to April 17.
|
2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2023, the Maine State Legislature was in session from December 7 to March 30.
|
2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2022, the Maine State Legislature was in session from January 5 to May 9.
|
2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2021, the Maine State Legislature was in session from December 2 to March 30.
|
2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2020, the Maine State Legislature was in session from January 8 to March 17.
|
2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2019, the Maine State Legislature was in session from December 5 through June 19.
|
2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
|---|
|
In 2018, the Maine State Legislature was in session from January 3 to May 2. The legislature held a special session from June 19 to September 13.
|
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Maine State Senate District 25 |
Officeholder Maine State Senate District 25 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Maine Morning Star, "Maine Senate Democrats select Daughtry as president to lead majority next session," November 8, 2024
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Teresa Pierce," accessed February 20, 2025
- ↑ The Maine Monitor, "Maine State Senate District 25," accessed March 11, 2025
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Maine Senate Democrats, "Teresa Pierce," accessed March 11, 2025
- ↑ Portland Press Herald, "Maine lawmakers to hear from public on marijuana legalization," February 27, 2017
- ↑ Maine House Democrats, "Governor signs Pierce bill to implement online voter registration," July 23, 2021
- ↑ Maine Legislature, "LD 416, An Act to Authorize a General Fund Bond Issue for Research and Development and Commercialization," April 24, 2023
- ↑ Maine Senate Democrats, "Teresa Pierce," accessed April 28, 2023
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Teresa Pierce," accessed April 28, 2023
- ↑ Politics1.com, "Maine," archived December 31, 2015
- ↑ Maine Secretary of State, "2016 Election Results," accessed December 20, 2016
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Maine Secretary of State, "List of Candidates who have filed for the June 14, 2016 Primary Election," accessed March 20, 2016
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Maine Secretary of State, "Tabulations for Primary Elections held on June 14, 2016," accessed August 11, 2016
- ↑ Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "List of Primary Candidates," accessed May 8, 2014
- ↑ Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "List of Non-Party Candidates," accessed June 2, 2014
- ↑ Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "Primary Election - June 10, 2014," accessed December 5, 2014
- ↑ Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "General Election - November 4, 2014," accessed December 5, 2014
- ↑ Teresa Pierce for Maine State Representative, homepage, accessed October 7, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Catherine Breen (D) |
Maine State Senate District 25 2022-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by Jethro Pease (R) |
Maine House of Representatives District 44 2014-2022 |
Succeeded by William Pluecker |
