Maine news, sports, weather from Waterville Morning Sentinel

ON MAINE POLITICS: Why negative ads work

By Susan M. Cover scover@mainetoday.com
MaineToday Media State House Writer

and Rebekah Metzler rmetzler@mainetoday.com
MaineToday Media State House Writer

It's Labor Day and you know what that means:

The start of the fall campaign season.

Your television will soon be clogged with ads from politicians, and the big question is, who will go negative first? And, how much money will third party groups spend to knock down opponents?

Political science professor Marvin Druker of the University of Southern Maine, Lewiston-Auburn College said even though voters say they dislike negative ads, they are effective.

"The reason a candidate may want to go negative is to start defining opponents before the public knows who they are," he said.

And while political junkies know most of the candidates, many folks don't necessarily have a clear understanding of where everyone is on the issues. The latest gubernatorial poll had 11 percent undecided.

Smart candidates will focus on the economy and talk about creating jobs, Druker said.

"A significant portion of the electorate is disenchanted with the way things are going because of the economy and the sense that government doesn't care about me or my family," he said.

So, for those of you who've been at camp all summer, here's a quick rundown of the major decisions you'll be asked to make on Nov. 2:

* Five people are running for governor: Independent Eliot Cutler, Republican Paul LePage, Democrat Libby Mitchell, independent Shawn Moody and independent Kevin Scott.

* All 186 legislative seats are up for election.

* There are no U.S. Senate races, but both House seats are contested. U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, is being challenged by Republican Dean Scontras. In the 2nd District, U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, a Democrat, faces Republican Jason Levesque.

* There's another casino question on the ballot. This time, a group called Black Bear Entertainment is seeking permission to open a resort casino in Oxford County.

* Two bond questions: a $5 million bond issue to increase access to dental care in Maine and a $9.75 million bond issue to invest in land conservation and working waterfront preservation.

Dems in Winthrop today

U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-1st District, and other prominent Democrats are expected to gather in Winthrop today for the Kennebec County Democratic Committee and the Winthrop Democrats Labor Day Barbecue and Pot Luck Picnic.

The event is from noon to 3:30 p.m. at Norcross Point.

"Retail politics is important in Maine and this event always allows voters to connect with the people asking for their votes," said Rita Moran, chairman of the county committee.

The event is free. Guests are encouraged to bring a side dish or dessert to share.

Small biz voting record

The Maine branch of the National Federation of Independent Business recently released a ranking of Maine state lawmakers based on their votes on key issues for small business.

The pro-business lobbying group used votes on bills addressing a Maine sales tax holiday (NFIB supported, but failed); a new DirigoHealth funding mechanism (NFIB opposed, but passed); tax reform (NFIB opposed, but passed and repealed by peoples' veto); unemployment benefit collection (NFIB opposed, but passed); and independent contractor classification (NFIB supported and passed).

By and large, Republicans scored higher than Democrats, voting more often with the NFIB position. Senate President Libby Mitchell, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, voted with the NFIB once in five of the highlighted votes, for a 20 percent score. Eight other Democratic state senators tied her for the lowest tally.