LD 656 Maine House · 132nd Legislature (2025-2026)

An Act To Save Tax Dollars In Maine'S Elections By Amending The Laws Governing When A Ranked-Choice Voting Count Must Be Conducted

LD 656 modifies Maine's ranked-choice voting rules to reduce election costs by ending the vote count earlier in certain scenarios. The bill states that if only two or fewer candidates remain in a race during the ranked-choice process, the candidate with a majority of votes in that round is immediately declared the winner - eliminating unnecessary additional counting rounds. This change applies to all Maine elections using ranked-choice voting, including state and local races, and aims to save taxpayer money by streamlining the tabulation process. It does not alter the core ranked-choice voting system but adjusts when the count concludes based on the number of remaining candidates.
Bill status failed 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Feb 20, 2025 Last action May 21, 2025
Floor votes

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Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
12
Key actions
1
Committee
3
May 20, 2025
Committee
On motion of Representative SUPICA of Bangor, the Majority Ought Not to Pass Report was ACCEPTED.
lower
May 15, 2025
Legislature · Passed
Reported Out - ONTP/OTP-AM
legislature
Feb 20, 2025
Committee
The Bill was REFERRED to the Committee on VETERANS AND LEGAL AFFAIRS pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint Rule 401.
lower
1 primary · 6 co-sponsors

Sponsors