Two groups hoping to get referendum questions on the November 2025 ballot gathered thousands of signatures at polling places Tuesday as part of their efforts to meet a January deadline.
The Maine Gun Safety Coalition and Voter ID for ME dispatched hundreds of volunteers across the state to explain to voters their ideas for ballot initiatives.
“On Tuesday, we saw an overwhelmingly positive response from Maine voters as more than 500 volunteers collected signatures at polling locations,” a spokesman for the coalition said via email.
And while they are still counting the signatures, they are in a “strong position” to meet the requirements to make the ballot, the spokesman said.
Nacole Palmer, executive director of the coalition, is leading the effort to have Maine switch to a red flag law, also known as an Extreme Risk Protection Order, from the current yellow flag system. The primary difference is that under red flag laws, family members can petition a court to remove firearms from someone they believe to be dangerous.
Maine’s yellow flag law relies on law enforcement to initiate a court proceeding.
On the voter ID front, current Maine law does not require voters to present photo ID at polling places on Election Day but it is required to register to vote. The Voter ID for ME group wants to change state law so that a photo ID would be required at polling places.
“It’s common-sense policy,” said Alex Titcomb, spokesman for the group. “Our messaging is about strengthening our elections.”
Titcomb said Maine already runs “great elections” but that they want to provide an added layer of protection. Thirty-six other states have a voter ID requirement and polling shows it’s a popular idea in Maine, Titcomb said.
The group’s website says the Maine Legislature “has repeatedly refused to strengthen our elections via legislation like Voter ID.”
Titcomb said while they are still counting what they gathered on Tuesday, they have more than 100,000 signatures collected to date.
To make the ballot, both groups need to turn in 67,682 valid signatures by Jan. 23, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
Earlier this year, the gun safety coalition worked with lawmakers to make some changes to Maine’s gun laws following the Oct. 25, 2023, mass shooting in Lewiston that claimed the lives of 18 people.
But lawmakers failed to act on a red flag law proposed by House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross (D-Portland), prompting the coalition to gather signatures in hopes of putting the question out to voters next year.
“Legislators failed to pass this most common-sense gun responsibility policy last session, and now it’s voters’ turn to take action directly,” Palmer said in a statement.
One of the sponsors of the signature gathering initiative is Arthur Barnard, father of Lewiston shooting victim Artie Strout.
“People are tired of inaction and stalling on this issue,” Barnard said in a statement. “This is a common-sense law that could have possibly prevented last year’s shooting. Nothing can bring my son back, but we can try to ensure no other family has to go through what mine has.”