🚪 The governor and House speaker united to help a Democrat on Tuesday's ballot.
◉ Mills and Talbot Ross have disagreed publicly of late, but they were together in Waldoboro on Sunday to canvass for former state Rep. Wendy Pieh, D-Bremen, who is facing former Rep. Abden Simmons, R-Waldoboro, in Tuesday's election. Republicans held weekend canvasses as well.
◉ Pieh has an uphill climb to hold the seat vacated in February by former Rep. Clinton Collamore, D-Waldoboro, who resigned after pleading not guilty to signature fraud charges. It's a Republican-leaning district, and Republicans have invested nearly $19,000 in outside money to Democrats' $4,000 or so.
◉ A victory would give a little momentum to Republicans, who have not won a truly competitive legislative special election since 2015 and were stalemated in a high-hopes election last year, cementing six straight years of united Democratic control of Augusta.
☀️ Manufacturers take a tough line on Maine's solar policies.
◉ Lawmakers are being targeted with digital ads urging them to support a Republican effort to end certain solar subsidies. Public Advocate William Harwood has urged lawmakers to rein them — although he does not want to totally end them — while projecting major electric rate increases in the near future. His line has prompted a fight with the solar industry.
◉ The ads comr from the Industrial Energy Consumer Group, an influential group of large power consumers including mills that is represented in Augusta by Democratic lobbyist Tony Buxton.
◉ It has a unique role in the debate over Maine's energy picture. For example, it is behind a bill this year from Sen. Nicole Grohoski, D-Ellsworth, that would give energy regulators a major role in increasing electrification on a broad scale in Maine and shift away from fossil fuels. But it also calls solar policies "broken" and encourages an embrace of Republican policies there, though a smaller set of reforms from Democrats seems to be a likelier bet for passage.
◉ "Tell Representative William Bridgeo [D-Augusta]: Stop the price spikes caused by Net Energy Billing!" one ad reads. |
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