Maine
We asked Maine’s gubernatorial candidates how they’d fix the state’s housing crisis. Here’s what they said.
Housing
This section of the BDN aims to help readers understand Maine’s housing crisis, the volatile real estate market and the public policy behind them. Read more Housing coverage here.
Halting property taxes, deterring migrants and dedicating $100 million to fund construction are among the ideas Maine’s gubernatorial candidates have to improve the state’s housing market.
Most of the 16 people vying to be Maine’s next governor agree the state’s housing market is suffering due to high prices, limited availability and slow construction. But their plans for how they’d immediately improve that if elected vary drastically.
Many candidates’ ideas centered around the same general themes: build more units and hasten construction. Doing this, they believe, will lower prices and make it easier for Mainers to buy a home.
The state’s tight housing market has been a burden on many Mainers — and a focal point for voters — since the pandemic, during which home prices skyrocketed due to a rush of demand while inventory plummeted. Since then, more homes have become available but prices remain high, which keeps homeownership out of reach for many, especially first-time buyers.
Roughly a dozen candidates agreed local and state permitting processes and regulations should be reformed to speed up the building process and allow more projects to be approved. A statewide study completed in 2023 found the state has a dramatic housing shortage due to years of underproduction, which will take at least 76,400 new units by 2030 to solve.
Three Republican candidates — Ben Midgley, Owen McCarthy and Bobby Charles — proposed addressing “red tape” that’s holding back development as part of their plan. Two others, Republican Jonathan Bush and independent Richard Bennett, want to perform statewide audits to identify where and why housing development projects are stalling.
Democrat Hannah Pingree proposed directing $100 million in state funding annually to fuel construction and preserve existing affordable units.
Both Angus King III, a Democrat, and John Glowa, an independent, outlined plans to build 10,000 new units, which King wants to complete by the end of his first term. However, King believes the 10,000 new units should span income levels while Glowa wants all the units to be low income rental housing.
Two other candidates, democrat Troy Jackon and republican Robert Wessels, described groups they plan to form with the explicit goal of improving housing in Maine. Jackson’s Department of Housing Affordability would be tasked with “tackling the housing crisis with the speed, scale, and focus working families deserve.”
Wessels’ team, meanwhile, would “dig into our housing regulations and figure out what ones we need to keep.” Regulations the group deems unnecessary would be repealed or altered to “allow our homebuilders to do their job.”
A few candidates offered entirely unique ideas, such as Democrat Shenna Bellows, who proposed freezing property taxes for Mainers while doubling those for out-of-state owners.
Republican David Jones, meanwhile, said he wants to make housing and other welfare programs accessible to U.S. citizens only, thus deterring “migration from foreign nations to Maine.”
Find the answer each gubernatorial candidate provided below when asked the first thing they would do to improve the state’s housing market if sworn in. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order.
Maine
Live updates: Midterms take shape in California, Maine, S.C. and Nevada; Trump to sign ICE bill
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates will be interviewed by members of the House Oversight Committee today as part of their investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and his associates.
The interview will take place behind closed doors and will be transcribed, the committee’s chairman, James Comer, R-Ky., said in a letter in March requesting the billionaire philanthropist’s testimony. Gates has not been accused of criminal wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.
A spokesperson for Gates told NBC News last night that “Gates welcomes the opportunity to appear before the Committee.”
“While he never witnessed or participated in any of Epstein’s illegal conduct, he is looking forward to answering all the committee’s questions to support their important work,” the spokesperson added.
Gates, whose name was mentioned in the Epstein files, has said that he “regrets every minute” he spent with the late convicted sex offender, whom he met in 2011. In the files, Epstein appeared to suggest in an email he sent to himself that Gates was having extramarital affairs and seeking drugs. Gates called the contents of the unsent email “false” and said he was “foolish” to have spent time with him. A Gates spokesperson also denied the allegations, calling them “absolutely absurd and completely false.”
Gates said he had “a number of dinners” with Epstein, and the focus of their conversations was on finding philanthropic contributions to global health initiatives. He said he never traveled to Epstein’s private island.
Gates later told Gates Foundation staffers that he previously had two affairs, but they did not involve women around Epstein, The Wall Street Journal reported in February, citing a recording of a town hall during which he also apologized for his ties to Epstein.
Gates maintained that he “did nothing illicit” and “saw nothing illicit,” the Journal reported.
“To be clear, I never spent any time with victims, the women around him,” he said, according to the Journal.
PORTLAND (WGME) – The race to represent the Democratic Party in the quest for the Blaine House remains incredibly close as the votes roll in Tuesday night.
Dr. Nirav Shah holds a slight lead over the rest of the field, but he may not stay there.
If no one gets to 50 percent of the vote, plus one vote, the race will go to ranked choice, and polls have suggested that former House Speaker Hannah Pingree could be a strong contender there.
Democratic candidate for governor Hannah Pingree (WGME)
She says she feels that way after going to hundreds of town halls and forums across the state and listening to the concerns of Maine families who are struggling in this economy.
She spoke to supporters at her watch party Tuesday night.
“Maine people are worried about what’s happening in this state and in this country. They’re worried about the rights that they might lose. And they want a governor who is tough,” Pingree said. “People are struggling right now. With the cost of housing, healthcare, childcare, energy, property taxes, you all know these things.”
“I think it’s going to be a huge year for Democrats,” Maine Secretary of State and gubernatorial candidate Shenna Bellows said. “We saw Democrats running out of primary ballots in Yarmouth, in Portland, multiple times. Clerks having to rush new ballots into the polling place. That’s a great sign when you see a record turnout like that.”
Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (WGME)
Shah, members of his team, and voters celebrated what they call a successful campaign Tuesday night.
He thanked the hundred or so supporters in attendance who have helped him get to Tuesday.
Shah says there are several pressing issues facing Maine, including affordability, the housing crisis and healthcare.
He hopes to be the man to tackle these issues head-on.
Shah told voters not to expect a final result Tuesday night.
While Shah expects the election to come down to rank choice voting, he insists this is only the beginning of his campaign.
“People in Maine have seen me show up, particularly during difficult times, and that is more relevant now than it ever has been,” Shah said. “This campaign is just getting started, and we are not going to stop until Election Day.”
Shah’s campaign says if he’s elected as governor in November, he would be first South Asian Democratic governor in United States history.
It is doubtful that any of the Democrats or Republicans running for governor will get more than 50 percent of the vote Tuesday night.
Mainers likely won’t know who will win the primary in the governor’s race until sometime next week.
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