Monday, October 25, 2010

AS MAINE GOES -

We used to be the state that boasted that saying - now there are states that have earlier primaries, and states that apparently have earned the right to it. Maybe Maine was not the first to use it, it's immaterial, I guess.

I used to live in Maine's largest city, but since I am no longer a resident there I suppose any opinion I have does not mean "squat" as the cliche goes. I still read the Portland news with interest. Portland is considering on this year's ballot, making it possible for non-citizen residents who are legally in the U. S. the right to vote on local issues and candidates. Does this mean that they can vote for the candidates who go to the State House and Senate, from their local districts, which then makes them voting summarily on State issues?

Would their ballots be different from the ones handed out to everyone and is that discriminating? Would the city of Portland have to set up a separate voting list of non-citizen legal residents? Has anyone figured out how to effectively and positively making sure there are no errors and how much this whole thing is going to cost the citizen of the city?

Portland's proposal to the voters has made it into the national news. Fox reported on it this morning, and stated that there are at least two other cities already allowing legal resident voting. They also stated New York "used to have it" . Now my questions are: why does New York no longer have it, and how is it working in the cities which do?

Further, how soon will it become Maine law once Maine's largest city embraces it?

You can probably already discern from this that I would not vote for it if I were a Portland resident. Being a tax payer does not accord the right to vote. Becoming a citizen gives one the right to vote.

I encourage all legal residents of Portland to pursue the path of American Citizenship.
Learn the language, become productive members of Maine's population. Then you may vote and feel proud that you have earned that right.

Jan Major
Scarborough




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