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Unenrolled voters get to cast ballots in Maine primaries, but little sign of mass registration changes

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Unenrolled voters get to cast ballots in Maine primaries, but little sign of mass registration changes


With Maine’s first election under a new semi-open primary law less than one month away, some unenrolled voters are already preparing to take advantage and cast ballots for either a Republican or Democratic presidential nominee.

More than 1,200 unenrolled voters requested absentee ballots for one of the March 5 primaries as of Thursday, less than one week after they became available, the Department of the Secretary of State said.

But city and town clerks said the number of voters who have come in to municipal offices to unenroll from a party ahead of the primaries, or switch their party affiliation, are so far not significantly larger than previous years.

Kennebunk Town Clerk Merton Brown said he has seen some changes in enrollments, but nothing unusual. “We’ve had some people – maybe 15 or 20 – who have gone from Republican or Democrat to unenrolled to have the flexibility in the open primary to choose the Republican or Democrat ballot,” Brown said.

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Maine used to have a closed party nomination process, which meant unenrolled or independent voters could not participate. The 2024 primaries are the first to be held under a new semi-open primary law that allows unenrolled voters to vote in either party primary. Unlike in a fully open primary, however, voters enrolled in a party can only vote in their party’s primary.

Maine Voters who are enrolled in a political party must switch to a different party this week in time to vote in the new party’s primary March 5, while unenrolled voters will be able to participate without registering for a party ahead of time.

Maine’s new semi-open primary system comes as some national organizations opposing former President Donald Trump have encouraged Democrats and unenrolled voters to cast ballots in the Republican primaries for a different Republican nominee. Trump criticized the efforts in New Hampshire, but easily won the state’s primary anyway.

At least one national group, PrimaryPivot, has been urging voters to change their party affiliation, if necessary, to vote against Trump in the Republican primaries.

It’s not clear how many of the unenrolled voters seeking absentee ballots are planning to vote in the Republican primary versus the Democratic primary. The secretary of state’s office said that data won’t be available until after the election.

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As of Jan. 18, Maine had 948,734 registered active voters, of which 36% were Democrats, 30% were Republicans, 29% unenrolled and 4% were Green Independent voters. The rest were affiliated with the No Labels and Libertarian parties, according to the most recent statewide data.

Nearly 10,700 absentee ballots had been requested as of Friday for the March 5 primaries, with Democrats requesting 56% of the ballots, Republicans 32% and unenrolled voters 12%.

While there doesn’t appear to be significant shift in voter enrollments in Maine so far, some voters have been open about the strategy.

Henry Garfield, a Bangor voter who recently switched his enrollment from Democrat to Republican, said he decided to make the change in hopes that a vote against Trump in the Republican primary might help stop him from getting the party’s nomination and being reelected.

“I’m pessimistic (my vote) can influence the outcome of the Republican nominating process,” he said. “I would like to think it could, but I’m pessimistic.”

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Still he felt like he had to do something.

“I think a lot of us feel powerless,” said the 66-year-old author and English professor at the University of Maine. “We’re just appalled he’s still a viable candidate for president. So I guess my thought was what can I do as one person?”

Garfield, who also wrote about his decision to switch parties in an opinion column for the Portland Press Herald, said he considered switching to unenrolled but felt strongly about choosing a party before voting for its nominee.

The number of voters who switch parties or unenroll is likely to be small this election cycle, though there may be some uptick compared to a normal year, said Mark Brewer, professor and chair of the political science department at the University of Maine.

“I don’t think there’s going to be a wave of it, but there may be more of this kind of stuff because we do have the semi-open primary and you’ve got a candidate on one side who generates a lot of passion both for and against,” Brewer said.

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“If you’re a Democrat and you think Donald Trump is an existential threat and you want to do all you can to make sure he doesn’t show up on ballot, (you might be thinking) is it worth it to unenroll and go vote in the Republican primary to vote against Trump?” But, he said, “I don’t think it will be a huge number.”

Election clerks say they are not seeing evidence of major shifts.

LITTLE CHANGE IN PORTLAND

In Portland, City Clerk Ashley Rand said the city “hasn’t seen too many party changes in the last couple of months,” and that requests for absentee ballots have in general been slow.

As of Friday, the majority-Democrat city had received 688 absentee ballot requests, including 502 from Democrats, 139 from Republicans and 61 from unenrolled voters. Rand said the city’s data report does not break down which ballot the unenrolled voters are choosing.

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In Lewiston, City Clerk and Registrar of Voters Kathy Montejo said they have not had any large increases in voter registrations or party enrollment lately, but the city also had two large municipal elections last fall where people most likely would have registered for the first time or made changes at the polls.

“We have not seen a lot of voters coming into the office lately to change parties or withdraw,” Montejo said in an email.

Maine’s new semi-open primary makes it one of seven states that allow voters who are unaffiliated with any party to participate in any party primary they choose, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Sixteen states have fully open primaries in which voters can participate in any primary election they choose, regardless of party affiliation, while most other states have closed primaries, where only party voters can participate, or have other forms of restrictions on who is allowed to participate and if they must register with the party.

Under Maine’s law, voters who want to switch from one party to another have must do so at least 15 days before the primary. For the March 5 election, that date is Feb. 19.

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However, since Feb. 19 is a holiday and most municipal offices are closed on the weekend, and many on Fridays, the last day most voters can change from one party to another and still participate in the primaries will be Thursday or Friday, depending on the municipality.


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Maine

This Classic New England-Style Cottage in Maine Has 200 Feet of Atlantic Ocean Frontage

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This Classic New England-Style Cottage in Maine Has 200 Feet of Atlantic Ocean Frontage


A waterfront home with open ocean views on the coast of Maine came to market Tuesday asking $4 million. 

Built in 1978, the three-bedroom cottage is at the southern point of Cape Elizabeth, less than 10 miles from downtown Portland. The 1.1-acre property on Sunny Bank Road features 200 feet of south-facing water frontage on the wide open Atlantic. 

It is bordered by a rocky sea wall that’s about 28 feet high, according to listing agent Sam Michaud Legacy Properties Sotheby’s International Realty

“The views are like a Monet painting,” he said via email. “The water sparkles and the waves are endless.”

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MORE: Laid-Back Costa Rica Is Getting a $7 Million Mega-Penthouse

The 3,364-square-foot home was built in classic New England style, with shingle siding, a single sloped roofline and large windows—complemented by white-washed walls, exposed-beam ceilings and wide-plank flooring on the interiors. 

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The main common area features cathedral ceilings with a step-down between the living and dining room, and a partial wall divides the dining room from the kitchen. There is also a wood-paneled family room off the kitchen, a gym and a covered porch. 

The sellers purchased the property in 2010 for $1.562 million, according to property records accessed through PropertyShark. They could not immediately be reached for comment. 

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“I have received quite a few inquiries since hitting the market two days ago,” Michaud said. “Buyers understand that this is a golden opportunity to own over an acre with 200 feet of bold oceanfront in Cape Elizabeth.”

MORE: Iranian Strikes on Dubai Put the City’s Roaring Real Estate Market to the Test

There are currently just seven three-bedroom homes available for sale in Cape Elizabeth and fewer than five waterfront properties, according to Sotheby’s and Zillow data. It is also the most expensive listing in the town, with another waterfront property on a tiny lot just south of Portland coming in a close second, according to Zillow. 

Michaud sold the former Cape Elizabeth home of Bette Davis this past summer for $13.4 million, the priciest sale on the cape in at least a decade—and even those views can’t compare. They’re “just magical,” he said. 



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NECEC conservation plan will not protect Maine’s mature forests | Opinion

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NECEC conservation plan will not protect Maine’s mature forests | Opinion


Robert Bryan is a licensed forester from Harpswell and author or co-author of numerous publications on managing forests for wildlife. Paul Larrivee is a licensed forester from New Gloucester who manages both private and public lands, and a former Maine Forest Service forester.

In November 2025, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved a conservation plan and forest management plan as mitigation for impacts from the NECEC transmission corridor that runs from the Quebec border 53 miles to central Maine.

As professional foresters, we were astonished by the lack of scientific credibility in the definition of “mature forest habitat” that was approved by DEP, and the business-as-usual commercial forestry proposed for over 80% of the conservation area.

The DEP’s approval requires NECEC to establish and protect 50,000 acres to be managed for mature-forest wildlife species and wildlife travel corridors along riparian areas and between mature forest habitats. The conservation plan will establish an area adjacent to the new transmission corridor to be protected under a conservation easement held by the state. Under this plan, 50% of the area will be managed as mature forest habitat.

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Under the forest management plan, a typical even-aged stand will qualify as “mature forest habitat” once 50 feet tall, which is only about 50 years old. These stands will lack large trees that provide wildlife denning and nesting sites, multiple vegetation layers that mature-forest birds use for nesting and feeding habitats and large decaying trees and downed logs that provide habitat for insects, fungi and small mammals, which in turn benefit larger predators.

Another major concern is that contrary to the earlier DEP order, the final approval allows standard sustainable forestry operations on the 84% of the forest located outside the stream buffers and special habitats. These stands may be harvested as soon as they achieve the “mature forest habitat” definition, as long as 50% of the conserved land is maintained as “mature.”

After the mature forest goal is reached, clearcutting or other heavy harvesting could occur on thousands of acres every 10 years. Because the landowner — Weyerhaeuser — owns several hundred thousand acres in the vicinity, any reductions in harvesting within the conservation area can simply be offset by cutting more heavily nearby. As a result, the net
mature-forest benefit of the conservation area will be close to zero.

Third, because some mature stands will be cut before the 50% mature forest goal is reached, it will take 40 years — longer than necessary — to reach the goal.

In the near future the Board of Environmental Protection (BEP) will consider an appeal from environmental organizations of the plan approval. To ensure that ecologically mature forest develops in a manner that meets the intent of the DEP/BEP orders, several things need to change.

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First and most important, to ensure that characteristics of mature forest habitat have time to develop it is critical that the definition include clear requirements for the minimum number of large-diameter (hence more mature) trees, adjusted by forest type. At least half the stocking of an area of mature forest habitat should be in trees at least 10 inches in diameter, and at least 20% of stands beyond the riparian buffers should have half the stocking in trees greater than or equal to 16 inches in diameter.

Current research as well as guidelines for defining ecologically mature forests, such as those in Maine Audubon’s Forestry for Maine Birds, should be followed.

Second, limits should be placed on the size and distribution of clearcut or “shelterwood” harvest patches so that even-aged harvests are similar in size to those created by typical natural forest disturbance patterns. These changes will help ensure that the mature-forest block and connectivity requirements of the orders are met.

Third, because the forest impacts have already occurred, no cutting should be allowed in the few stands that meet or exceed the DEP-approved definition — which needs to be revised as described above — until the 50% or greater mature-forest goal is reached.

If allowed to stand, the definitions and management described in the forest management plan would set a terrible precedent for conserving mature forests in Maine. The BEP should uphold the appeal and establish standards for truly mature forest habitat.

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Rage Room in Portland, Maine, Developing ‘Scream Room’ Addition

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Rage Room in Portland, Maine, Developing ‘Scream Room’ Addition


For a lot of people throughout Maine, there’s some built up frustration that they’ve just been keeping inside.

That frustration can come in a lot of different forms. From finances to relationships to the world around you.

So it makes plenty of sense that a rage room opened in Portland, Maine, where people can let some of that frustration out.

It’s called Mayhem and people have been piling in to smash, crush and do dastardly things to inanimate objects that had no idea what was coming.

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But Mayhem has realized not everyone is down with swinging a sledgehammer. So they’ve decided to cook up something new.

Mayhem Creating ‘Scream Room’ at Their Space in Portland, Maine

Perhaps the thought of swinging a baseball bat and destroying a glass vase brings you joy. The thought of how sore your body will be after that moment makes you less excited.

Mayhem Portland has heard you loud and clear and is developing a new way to get the rage out. By just screaming.

Mayhem is working on opening their very first scream room. It’s exactly what you think it is, a safe place to spend some time just screaming all of the frustration out.

There isn’t an official opening date set yet but it’s coming soon along with pricing.

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Mayhem in Portland, Maine, Will Still Offer Rage Rooms and Paint Splatter

While a scream room is on the way, you can still experience a good time at Mayhem with one of their rage rooms or a paint splatter room.

Both can be experienced in either 20-minute or 30-minute sessions.

All the details including some age and attire requirements can be found here.

TripAdvisor’s Top 10 Things to do in Portland, Maine

Looking for fun things to do in Portland, ME? Here is what the reviewers on TripAdvisor say are the 10 best attractions.

This list was updated in March of 2026

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Gallery Credit: Chris Sedenka

Top 15 of The Most Powerful People in Maine

Ever wonder who the most powerful players are in Maine? I’ve got a list!

Gallery Credit: Getty Images





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