Dear John,
Wow, what a night!
Voters in Maine went to the polls yesterday and spoke loud and clear. They chose climate champions over climate deniers up and down the ballot — candidates who will drive Maine forward to a clean-energy future and protect our air, land, and water for years to come. Maine people said they Won’t Go Back to fossil fuels and oil dependence and that Maine Won’t Wait to tackle climate change.
THANK YOU. Because of your support, Maine Conservation Voters Action Fund was able to go all-in to help re-elect climate champion Gov. Janet Mills and return a pro-environment, pro-democracy majority to the Maine State Legislature. The resources we put into this year’s campaign — close to $1 million — reflect our deep commitment to electing leaders who will put the health of our planet front and center. And it was only possible because of your partnership in this work.
This year, MCV Action Fund endorsed Governor Mills for re-election, twenty-five candidates for the Maine Senate, and ninety-three candidates for the Maine House. Of our endorsed legislative candidates, 92% in the state senate and 78% in the state house have won their races so far. We are still waiting on results in a few close districts.
In addition, we endorsed two candidates for the Portland City Council who were victorious. Pious Ali (At-Large) and Regina Phillips (District-3) will ensure that climate champions are well-represented in Maine’s largest city.
So much was at stake last night. Gov. Mills' decisive victory was not only a testament to her four years of extraordinary climate leadership, it was also a repudiation of Paul LePage's anti-environment, anti-clean energy policies of the past. Maine voters demonstrated a willingness to support candidates up and down the ballot who understand that the health of Maine’s environment, people, and economy are deeply connected.
While we are thrilled about what the election results mean for climate action, we also recognize that there is still more to be done. We won’t stop our collective work to recognize the inherent sovereignty of the Wabanaki Nations at the state and federal levels, which is long overdue. When the state legislature reconvenes in January, we’ll be working side by side with our partners to advance protections for our environment, racial equity, and secure, accessible elections.
Making progress is only possible when we elect leaders who will put our communities ahead of polluters. Thanks again for your support in ensuring that our elected leaders hear the priorities of Mainers who want to protect our climate and our environment today and for generations to come.
Onward!
