Attacks on the long tradition of early and absentee voting in Maine ignore the fact that the popularity of absentee voting in gubernatorial elections has significantly increased voter turnout since at least 2002. This time around, more than 140,000 people voted early or absentee. Any move to eliminate the choice and convenience of this option will restrict voter participation, counter to the core principles of our democratic system.

So she wants non-party primaries. Which, granted, could also be seen as sour grapes; she lost the Democratic primary back in the spring.

Kind of sour grapes, especially after Down East confirmed Cutler has voted early often.

AP Photo/Pat Wellenbach

I can’t believe this guy is our governor.

“We need someone who can bring people together. It’s going to be almost impossible to get through what we are facing if it’s all going to be partisan,” King said. “He’s a really smart guy. He has thought about these issues as deeply as anyone I have ever encountered in Maine.”

Don’t forget to vote on Tuesday. (Unless you’re voting for LePage).

I won’t turn this into a political blog, I promise, I just find it interesting that now both the Lewiston Sun-Journal and Bangor Daily News have endorsed Eliot Cutler for governor: “Maine needs a statesman, not an antagonist” and “Eliot Cutler for Governor“.

The Sun-Journal:

LePage is correct on the issues, but his bare-knuckle style and bully tactics will not produce the change Mainers so desperately need. In fact, his combative stance will further entrench Maine’s woes.

We need a practiced executive in the Blaine House, a person who has the skills and experience to be an administrator of progress. A person determined to improve our schools, reduce our taxes, fix our roads and vastly shrink government spending.

Cutler is that person.

And from the Daily News:

Maine has a rare opportunity to remake its government. State finances demand it. The public, increasingly aware that big changes are needed for the state to prosper, wants it.

Only one candidate for governor – Eliot Cutler – has the skills, vision and detailed plans to lead this work.

So now the Sun-Journal, the Daily News, the Press Herald, the Portland Phoenix, the York Weekly, the York County Coast Star, the Portsmouth Herald, the Times Record and the USM Free Press have all endorsed Cutler.

Wow.

University of Southern Maine’s Free Press also endorsed him today: “Eliot Cutler for Governor“.

I have a good Cutler story from last week. I was leaving my class at USM on Thursday night, and I saw Cutler and his wife in the parking garage. I accosted them, told him that I was interested in voting for him, but had concerns about his education platform (I had recently read a blurb about his wanting to increase classroom sizes). He shifted into politician-mode about some mailer from the MEA about teacher layoffs, which I quickly brushed aside – I just wanted to know the facts of his platform.

He went into his prepared remarks about 11.3 students for every teacher and Maine having the second-highest student-teacher ratio, and by increasing it to 13.5 it’d save something like $140 million.

I said that I’d look into it some more, but that I was still 90% sure I’d vote for him.

And then he did something classy.

He said, “Josh, if you don’t vote for me, please email me and let me know why.”

Now shoot, will I really email him if I don’t vote for him? Will he really read it if I really mail him? Will he care why?

But still, I thought it was classy.

Quite honestly I’m going to vote after my Tuesday night USM class, at around 7 pm, and I’ll see where bat-shit crazy Tea Partier Paul LePage is in the standings, and then vote accordingly.

I’m all for independents, but not if elect a nutball (cough) George W. Bush (cough).

Anyway, I ended by saying how I was attending Jon Stewart’s Rally to Restore Sanity this weekend, and I was contemplating wearing a Cutler tee shirt. His wife thought that was a good idea.

So even if I don’t vote for him, I think I’ll wear a shirt.