Democratic leaders have said the voting legislation would serve as a powerful counterbalance to a wave of new restrictive voting laws approved in Republican-controlled states after the 2020 election.
voting rights
Posted inLewiston-Auburn, sj-web
Dunlap to Lewiston mayor: Letter to voters causes 'unfounded fear'
LEWISTON — In a formal response to Lewiston officials Friday, Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap described Mayor Shane Bouchard’s recent letter to new voters as “a disservice to the public discourse.” The letter to Bouchard came two days after criticism rained down on the mayor from college students and the City Council president, who charged […]
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Posted inLetters
Public vote means nothing
After reading the Associated Press story “What’s in your wallet” (Sun Journal, May 11), it has become quite apparent that public voting is only a formality and does not hold water any better than a sieve. If people are to vote, they need to be educated on what they are voting for, and its ramifications, […]
Posted inLetters
Accept resident responsibilities
After reading the article on Bates students and their ability to vote in local elections (Nov. 7), I am again frustrated that individuals get to decide to embrace one law and disregard another. If you are ready to declare yourself a resident of a municipality, then you should be ready to accept all that goes […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Ill-conceived voting petition aimed at Lewiston collegians
If I am ever tempted to claim that I am involved in the local community, I stop myself and remember others whose work puts me to shame. Consider Melody, from whom I recently heard. I know her personally, but I didn’t know just how much she was using her spare time to work in the […]
Posted inLetters
Students are the future of democracy
Should “transient” college students help decide the future of their (temporary) home city? I say yes, definitely, and thank them for their energy and involvement. The college student population is neither homogeneous nor politically unchanging, but Bates College students are always a vital part of Lewiston, and their ideas and desires matter. Besides, elections and […]
Posted inLetters
Encourage student voting
This is in response to the letter to the editor by Lewiston City Councilor Tim Lajoie (Nov. 14), who seems to presuppose that some college students participating in local elections are doing so for unethical reasons. Every American citizen who lives within a community, and is subject to its laws, has as much at stake […]
Posted inLetters
Ethical for Bates students to vote?
There has been much hullabaloo made about the Bates College students voting in local elections. I’d like to offer my perspective. In 1999, I was a resident of Manchester, N.H. I had recently finished college and was moving back to Maine in December of that year. When Election Day came, I submitted a blank ballot. […]
Posted inLetters
N. Smith: Fewer people are voting
This is in response to Luke Jensen’s letter, “Photo ID won’t hurt voting access” (Feb. 6). I write in response to his last paragraph: “Regarding a political right to free transportation to the polls: It didn’t make James Madison’s list, but I like to think he would have chuckled and asked why individuals refused to […]