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Home » News » Blog » Maine Needs New Leadership for Immigration, Education, Safety, and Voter Integrity: Poliquin
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Maine Needs New Leadership for Immigration, Education, Safety, and Voter Integrity: Poliquin

By Bruce Poliquin, former Maine State Treasurer and 2nd District Congressman 
Bruce PoliquinBy Bruce PoliquinMay 30, 2025Updated:May 30, 2025No Comments6 Mins Read
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Maine’s in one heck of a mess. Our country is changing course for the better, but Maine Democrats who run our state are doubling down on lunacy. We can fix this if common-sense voters go to the polls in droves next year and toss out the radicals who put us in this bind.

It took less than two months for the new administration and Republican majority in Washington to stop the surge of millions of illegals streaming across our border with Mexico. But now, there’s increased illegal activity along the Canadian border. The number one responsibility of any president and governor is to keep our citizens safe. Without that, we have nothing. Since our current governor will not do so, it’s critical that Maine’s next governor direct all layers of state law enforcement to coordinate with the feds to apprehend and deport individuals who shouldn’t be here. This includes Chinese nationals illegally growing and processing pot in rural Maine.

I guess Gov. Janet Mills (D) and her extremists are okay with the four-year open border disaster. They continue to push their plan to invite and resettle another 75,000 immigrants we cannot afford to care for. Our next governor should close the Office of New Americans and publicly announce the end of additional immigrant resettlements until we first take care of our own citizens, including with scarce housing.

State after state is putting an end to biological boys unfairly competing in girls’ sports and using the wrong bathrooms, locker rooms, and showers. Not Maine. The Governor, Attorney General Aaron Frey, and the liberal Democratic Majority refuse to protect our daughters while defying federal civil rights laws. In the process, they’re jeopardizing $250 million in federal dollars every year to help our schools. Maine’s next leaders should stand up for our hardworking girls and stop this absurdity. If not, good luck attracting young families with kids to Maine. 

[RELATED: Maine Students Continue to Struggle Academically Post-Pandemic: 2024 Nation’s Report Card…]

In 2024, Maine 4th and 8th graders scored the lowest in thirty years on standardized reading and math tests (National Assessment of Educational Progress). A few decades ago, our students were at the top. The number of K-12 students has declined, and classes are smaller, but school budgets continue to rise. So, the problem is not a shortage of money that we spend to educate our children. Too many of our public schools have shifted away from teaching how to read and write, do math, and study history and science. Instead, they prod our kids to hate America and treat classmates differently depending on their skin color. This news service even discovered that some schools secretly advise minors on using powerful drugs and receiving irreversible surgeries if they want to change their genders, while shutting out parents from discussing these life-changing treatments. Newly elected leaders can quickly end this dangerous woke agenda and refocus our schools on teaching what will help our children succeed in life.

[RELATED: Shocking Chart Shows the Alarming — and Expensive — Failure of Maine’s Public Schools…]

This November, Mainers will decide at the ballot box if a photo ID is required to vote in future elections. Thirty-six other states do. For some senseless reason, Governor Mills and Secretary of State Shenna Bellows reject this common-sense voter integrity measure. Prove them wrong. Swarm the polls in November and pass voter ID for Maine. More than 60 percent of our fellow Mainers support this.

Republicans in Washington are bringing back work requirements in order to receive welfare for able-bodied adults without a disability or young children. Several years ago, Maine Democrats stripped away such requirements and refuse to change course today. That’s not fair to at-risk Mainers trying to escape government dependency and poverty, or to struggling taxpayers who foot the bill. Maine’s new leaders should reimpose work requirements to incentivize everyone to live a more productive and dignified life.

The Trump Administration is looking under every rock to eliminate wasteful government spending and fraud that drive up inflation. The crazies in Augusta are going in the opposite direction. Over the past few years, the Democrat Majority has spent nearly $15 billion of one-time COVID-related funds from Washington. (To compare, Maine’s annual budget is roughly $6 billion.) So, now, Maine families and small businesses are stuck with paying for a larger and more expensive state government. Mills and her spendthrift Democrats are scrambling to raise every tax and fee they can get away with to plug a $500 million shortfall in the current budget. Mainers already struggle under the 4th highest tax burden in the country. They can’t afford more government spending and taxes. The next Republican Governor and Legislature should unwind the higher taxes and fees imposed by Mills and the Democrats, and audit every state agency to cut unnecessary spending.

Maine residents pay the 6th highest electric rates in the country. This is because, in part, the Democrat majority passed laws that force us to pay wind and solar taxes to subsidize large corporations to build their costly eyesores. Most of the country is moving away from these unsustainable Green New Deal subsidies, but Maine is plowing ahead with them. A new GOP majority next year can fix this. We should also partner with the Trump White House, which understands the importance of piping more clean-burning natural gas to New England to help warm our homes and fuel our economy. This is a no-brainer.

Maine is in a bad spot right now. Next November, voters can correct this by electing common-sense leaders to change course instead of following Massachusetts and California. We can have a smaller and more efficient government with lower taxes, fewer regulations, lower energy costs, and more jobs. A community that rewards work and dignity over welfare and poverty. We can protect our precious daughters while teaching all kids to love each other and our country, and to learn the basics to succeed in life. Our elections can be secure, and we can take care of Maine residents first. Fixing this mess is going to be hard, but we’ll find joy with every success. God forbid, if we don’t elect strong, capable, and compassionate Republicans next year, our beloved Pine Tree State will continue on this radical path to nowhere good.

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Bruce Poliquin
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Bruce Poliquin is a third-generation Mainer, former State Treasurer, and the former Congressman from Maine's Second Congressional District.

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