It’s time for Maine to let voters fill key state positions instead of the Legislature | Steve Collins
I know it seems like there are more than enough elections this year. But there should be more.
For a lot of reasons, Maine voters ought this fall to be choosing who should serve for the next four years as the state’s attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer and auditor. Instead, the Legislature in August will be making those choices for us — and lawmakers will be doing it by secret ballot.
Maine is the only state that gives the Legislature so much power, making it an anomaly that limits civic participation in filling key constitutional offices.
Let’s focus on the attorney general’s position since it has the most influence. In 43 states, the post is filled by direct election.
In Maine, the job has been held by Aaron Frey since 2018. He had previously served two terms as a state legislator before his colleagues tapped him to succeed Janet Mills as Maine’s chief law enforcement officer and legal advisor.
The biggest problem with letting lawmakers fill the slot is that our attorney general is beholden not to the public but to a majority of the 186 men and women who make the selection. That’s a clear conflict of interest.
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The attorney general, like every constitutional officer, ought to take actions based on their view of what the people of Maine want and deserve rather than what the legislative majority desires. It makes for better public accountability and rewards independent judgment.
Last year, a policy analyst for the Maine Policy Institute, Harris Van Pate, laid out the case clearly in legislative testimony that, not surprisingly, failed to convince the Legislature to give up its power.
Van Pate, who is now seeking a doctorate in Georgia, told lawmakers that Maine’s existing system “heavily favors the majority party in the Legislature, often resulting in appointments that reflect political alliances rather than broad public interest or qualifications for the roles they serve.”
The four positions appointed by the Legislature have important roles to play. The attorney general prosecutes legal cases and provides legal counsel to the state. The secretary of state oversees elections and many business filings. The treasurer manages the state’s money. And the auditor ensures public accounts are kept honestly.
“The roles of these offices in investigating corruption means that legislative appointment, especially the nontransparent kind, raises major questions as to the risk of abuse of power due to officeholder bias,” Van Pate testified, reinforcing mistrust in government.
I can’t even think of a good reason to leave it in the hands of lawmakers.
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Beyond the official duties issues is another one that matters: Because Maine has only three statewide elections, for its two U.S. Senate seats and for governor, it has no effective political system to create a bench of likely contenders.
There’s something to be said for picking people to serve in high-visibility public offices so that voters can tell if they have what it takes to move on to even more important positions.
Instead, Maine just has a scramble every time a statewide post opens up and all too often winds up with weak, untested candidates on the general election ballot, as we saw in the June primaries when Democrats picked a newcomer for U.S. Senate and Republicans tapped one for governor.
Let’s fix this so Maine voters have more power and legislators have less.
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Tagged: columns
Steve Collins became an opinion columnist for the Maine Trust for Local News in April of 2025. A journalist since 1987, Steve has worked for daily newspapers in New York, Connecticut and Maine and served. More by Steve Collins
