Midcoast voters hit polls to be heard on women’s rights, education reform, stronger economy

Brunswick voters trickle in at lunchtime to cast their votes in the junior high school gymnasium. Maria Skillings / The Times Record

Midcoast voters trickled into the polls throughout Election Day to cast their vote in both local and statewide races on Tuesday.

Brunswick Town Clerk Fran Smith said the flow of Election Day voters had been manageable because 6,300 ballots were cast in advance by people who voted absentee. That accounts for roughly half the registered voters in town.

Smith said the big-ticket item drawing voters to the polls this year was the governor’s race between Democrat incumbent Janet Mills and Republican Paul LePage.

Brunswick residents Al and Marleen Sinyard said they voted to fulfill their “patriotic duty” and were deeply concerned about Maine’s economy and education system.

Other voters were more concerned about the future of women’s rights.

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, which safeguarded women’s right to an abortion at the federal level. The decision, which makes abortion regulation a state issue, started a nationwide movement motivating women to vote in 2022.

“My personal bodily autonomy is at stake,” said reproductive health care worker Shannon Mackey said. With tears in her eyes, she said she will continue to fight for women’s ability to make their own choices.

New voter Alexis Mitchell, 20, sheepishly admitted she went to the polls because her “mother made her.”

“In a couple more years the country is going to be handed to my generation and none of us know what the hell we are doing,” Mitchell said. “So, it’s best to start making good decisions now. I’m terrified for my generation.”

Freeport resident Deborah McLean said she hoped the young people would get out and vote this year.

“They should go vote,” McLean said. “We have to take responsibility for who governs our state. It’s an amazing thing that my vote counts as much as a billionaire’s vote or a homeless person’s vote. All of us are important in a democracy.”

In Brunswick, two white vans labeled “Votemobile” chauffeured Brunswick High School students to and from the polls so they could cast their first vote.