Troy Jackson, Hannah Pingree, and Secretary of State Shenna Bellows have formed an alliance in the Democratic gubernatorial race, vowing on Friday to rank each other as second and third choices in an apparent gambit to overturn frontrunner Nirav Shah if the race goes into ranked-choice voting.
The three candidates, polling at the back of the field according to a Pan Atlantic Research Omnibus poll released on Wednesday, issued extremely similar statements, including the same graphic.
The candidates each want voters to support them for their first choice and to rank the other two as their second and third choices.
“I’m running to win this race for working class Mainers and change the status quo, but I ask that if you plan to vote for me, you rank these two candidates right after. And if I’m not your first-place vote, I’d love to have your second,” said Jackson.
“I’m asking Mainers to rank me first, but also to support these two colleagues with their second and third place votes. I helped pass ranked choice voting so you’d have this power. Use it,” said Bellows.
“This is a ranked-choice election, and I’m ranking them on my ballot because like me, I know they will fight for working Mainers. Maine needs leaders like that up and down the ballot in November,” said Pingree.
The announcements seem to be a deliberate attempt to overthrow current frontrunner Shah’s lead if, as appears likely, the race goes into ranked choice voting.
If a single candidate wins over 50 percent of the votes, he will immediately win, but if, as appears likely in the crowded field, no single candidate can meet that threshold, the race will go into ranked-choice voting, and second and third place rankings will be considered.
The system could lead to significant upsets if a candidate who received relatively few first-place votes drew enough support as a second or third choice.
Interestingly, this is not the first apparent alliance made in the Democratic races.
Three Democrats running for the 2nd Congressional Seat set to be vacated by Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine)—former state auditor Matt Dunlap, Jordan Wood, and Paige Loud—issued a joint statement to frontrunner Joe Baldacci urging him not to take any out-of-state funding for his primary campaign.
Moe , Larry and Curly have a better chance of winning than these three clowns .
God help us .
NOTHING surprises me here in Maine anymore .
We’ve gone over the edge .