2014 Maine Question 1 facts for kids
| Question 1: Citizen Initiative | |||||||||||||||||||
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| An Act To Prohibit the Use of Dogs, Bait or Traps When Hunting Bears Except under Certain Circumstances | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Source: Office of the Secretary of State of Maine, Tabulation of Votes | |||||||||||||||||||
Yes
NoMaine Question 1 (MQ1) was a special vote in Maine on November 4, 2014. This vote was about a law called "An Act To Prohibit the Use of Dogs, Bait or Traps When Hunting Bears Except under Certain Circumstances." It was a "citizen-initiated referendum," which means regular people gathered enough signatures to put the idea on the ballot.
The idea was to stop hunters from using dogs, bait (food to attract bears), or traps to catch bears. The state's law-making group, the Maine Legislature, decided not to pass this law themselves. So, it automatically went to the voters. In the end, more people voted "No" (320,873 votes) than "Yes" (279,617 votes). This meant the proposal did not become a law.
Contents
Why Was This Vote Happening?
In 2013, a group called the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) wanted to change how bears are hunted in Maine. This wasn't the first time Maine voters had thought about this. Back on November 2, 2004, voters also said "No" to a similar ban. At that time, 389,455 people were against the ban, and 344,322 were for it.
With help from HSUS, some Maine residents formed a group called Mainers for Fair Bear Hunting (MFBH). On July 9, 2013, MFBH started collecting signatures. They needed 57,277 signatures to get their idea on the ballot for the November 2014 election. They collected many more, submitting 63,626 valid signatures by February 3, 2014.
Because they had enough signatures, the idea was sent to the Maine Legislature. However, on March 25, the legislature decided not to act on it. This meant the question would go directly to the voters. On June 25, the final question was announced: "Do you want to ban bear hunting using bait, traps or dogs except to protect property, public safety or for research?" Since it was the only citizen-led vote, it became "Question 1."
The Campaign: Who Said What?
When the idea of the vote came up, groups started campaigning for and against it.
Opponents of the ban formed a group called Save Maine's Bear Hunt (SMBH) on September 23, 2013. This group had support from many important people, including the three main candidates for governor and many state lawmakers. SMBH argued that the vote was about how to manage wildlife in Maine, not just about hunting methods. They believed that wildlife experts know best how to manage the bear population. They also didn't like that HSUS, a national group, was getting involved in a local Maine issue.
Mainers for Fair Bear Hunting (MFBH) said their goal was to stop what they called "cruel and unsportsmanlike" hunting methods. They believed these methods were not needed to control the bear population in Maine. MFBH also felt that the earlier vote in 2004 failed because of "scare tactics" and wrong information.
MFBH received almost all its money from HSUS. For example, between May 28 and July 15, HSUS gave MFBH $780,000. During the same time, SMBH and other groups against the ban raised about $250,000. The president of HSUS, Wayne Pacelle, even visited homes in Portland and Bangor to talk about the issue.
The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (DIF&W), which manages wildlife in the state, and its leader, Chandler Woodcock, officially opposed Question 1. MFBH sued DIF&W on September 30. MFBH wanted DIF&W to stop campaigning against the question and to pay back any state money used for campaigning. MFBH said that while they respected the agency's right to share facts, DIF&W had gone too far. Commissioner Woodcock said the lawsuit was just a political move to get attention.
On October 17, DIF&W announced it would stop using state money to oppose the vote. However, they still said their actions had been legal. On October 22, a judge denied MFBH's request to stop DIF&W's campaigning. The judge said that DIF&W's speech was about topics they were experts in. The Maine Attorney General's office called this a win for free speech. MFBH, however, said that the government shouldn't tell people how to vote.
After the vote failed, some people thought that having this question on the ballot helped Paul LePage get re-elected as Governor of Maine. They believed it brought out voters who also supported LePage.
What Did People Think? (Polls)
Before the vote, different groups asked people how they planned to vote. These surveys are called "polls." Here's what some of them showed:
| Date of opinion poll | Conducted by | Sample size (likely voters) |
Yes | No | Undecided | Margin of Error |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 23–29, 2014 | Bangor Daily News/Ipsos | 488 | 45% | 49% | 6% | ±5.1% |
| October 15–21, 2014 | University of New Hampshire | 667 | 36% | 57% | 7% | ±3.8% |
| October 6–12, 2014 | Bangor Daily News/Ipsos | 540 | 43% | 49% | 7% | ±4.8% |
| September 18–25, 2014 | University of New Hampshire | 441 | 41% | 53% | 6% | ±4.4% |
| June 12–18, 2014 | University of New Hampshire | 441 | 48% | 44% | 8% | ±4.4% |
Who Supported Each Side? (Endorsements)
Many people and groups publicly supported or opposed Question 1. When someone "endorses" something, it means they publicly say they support it.
Supporters
- American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
- Humane Society of the United States
- International Fund for Animal Welfare
- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
- State Representative Alan Casavant (D-Biddeford), Mayor of Biddeford
- State Representative Ben Chipman (I-Portland)
- State Representative Denise Harlow (D-Portland)
- Kesha, musician
- Bernd Heinrich, naturalist, author, University of Vermont biology professor
- Bill Maher, comedian, TV host
- Paul C. Paquet, wildlife research biologist, University of Victoria professor
- Steve Woods, chairman of the Yarmouth Town Council, former U.S. Senate candidate
- Biddeford Journal Tribune (a newspaper)
- Brunswick Times-Record (a newspaper)
- Portsmouth, New Hampshire Herald (a newspaper)
Opponents
- Angus King, Independent U.S. senator and former governor.
- AFL-CIO of Maine (a labor union group)
- National Rifle Association
- Sportsman's Alliance of Maine
- Shenna Bellows, 2014 Democratic U.S. Senate candidate
- State Senator Emily Cain (D-Penobscot), candidate for U.S Representative
- Eliot Cutler, candidate for governor
- Paul LePage, Governor of Maine
- Kris MacCabe, Maine Game Warden, cast member of North Woods Law TV show
- U.S. Representative Mike Michaud, candidate for governor
- Ted Nugent, musician
- Bruce Poliquin, former state treasurer of Maine, candidate for U.S Representative
- Chandler Woodcock, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Commissioner, former state senator
- Bangor Daily News (a newspaper)
- MaineToday Media newspapers: Portland Press Herald, Kennebec Journal, Morning Sentinel
Declined to endorse
- U.S. Senator Susan Collins
