Rep. Adam Lee, D-Auburn, listens to a presentation during the Androscoggin Watershed Conference in Auburn on May 7, 2024. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

A Democratic lawmaker from Maine is hoping to preserve the state’s unusual system of splitting its electoral votes for president by sending a message to Nebraska that it should do the same.

Rep. Adam Lee, D-Auburn, formally introduced a bill Monday that says if Nebraska switches to a winner-take-all electoral vote process in a presidential election, Maine would do the same, and the electoral votes would likely cancel each other out.

Lee said he hopes the bill, LD 1356, will discourage efforts by partisan forces to gain an advantage by changing the electoral system in Nebraska. And that, in turn, would discourage similar efforts in Maine.

“Support this bill, be proactive and establish a deterrent and remove the incentive for out-of-state money, power and partisan pressure to destroy our system,” Lee said. “This bill is a solution and strategy between parties and states to secure our system from outside pressure.”

Maine and Nebraska are the only states in the country that divide electoral votes based on outcomes in congressional districts. Other states throw all their Electoral College votes to the statewide winners.

Nebraska’s 2nd District tends to give its single electoral vote to Democrats while the rest of the state votes for Republicans. Maine’s 2nd District, on the other hand, has recently tended to give its one electoral vote to Republicans, while the rest of the state supports Democrats.

The bill comes after Nebraska Republicans have repeatedly pushed for a change to winner-take-all elections to prevent the loss of one of that state’s five electoral votes to Democrats in the Omaha area.

A bill in the Nebraska Legislature was defeated last week, but the issue is expected to come up again.

If Nebraska switched to winner-take-all, Lee said, Maine could expect to see a similar push from Democrats here to change Maine’s system to cancel out the shift in Nebraska.

Lee’s proposal got the support of several people who testified during a public hearing before the veterans committee.

Joanne Mason of Readfield, board president of the Family Violence Project in Augusta, said Maine’s current system ensures that the state’s less populous and more rural 2nd District has a say in the presidential election. A change in Nebraska could have “disastrous consequences” in Maine, Mason said, and result in the 2nd District losing its voice.

“We need to send a strong message to those seeking to meddle in Nebraska, and by default here in Maine, that we won’t stand for any outside interference,” she said.

The Maine Policy Institute, a conservative think tank, opposed the bill in written testimony, saying it wrongly gives control over Maine’s electoral process to Nebraska, disempowering Maine lawmakers and voters, and could result in the loss of Maine’s current system, which the institute said better reflects the diversity of opinions across the state.

Committee members also heard testimony Monday on a pair of bills that would repeal a law passed last year committing Maine to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact.

The compact seeks to ensure that the presidential candidate who wins the most popular votes nationwide is elected president. The compact would be activated after enough states join to control 270 Electoral College votes, the minimum number needed to win the presidency. At that point, the member states would cast their electoral votes for the national popular vote winner, regardless of the outcomes in their own states.

Rep. Barbara Bagshaw, R-Windham, introduced legislation, LD 252, to withdraw from the compact, saying that a national popular vote weakens the impact of Maine votes on the overall election outcome. A similar bill, LD 1373, from Rep. Ken Fredette, R-Newport, would repeal the law put in place last year.

Bagshaw said Maine’s system of dividing electoral votes is more fair. She noted that in 2024, President Donald Trump’s victory in the 2nd Congressional District meant Maine gave one of its four electoral votes to Trump, but the rest of the state got to register  support for Kamala Harris.

“While the nationwide winner in this case would not have changed, three of Maine’s four electoral votes (for Harris) served as a direct representation of the will of Maine voters, a voice that would be silenced under the NPV compact,” Bagshaw said.

Supporters of a national popular vote defended the law, telling the committee that it’s more fair and equitable.

“We believe that every vote across all 50 states and the District of Columbia should matter equally when electing the president,” said Al Cleveland, director of advocacy at the League of Women Voters of Maine, a nonpartisan group dedicated to informed and active participation in government.

Gov. Janet Mills allowed the bill having Maine join the compact to become law without her signature last year after it passed on narrow margins.

The bill was enacted 73-72 in the House of Representatives and 18-12 in the Senate, with some Democrats in each chamber joining Republicans who opposed it.

It was clear Monday that some Democrats still have reservations about the compact. Sen. Jill Duson, D-Portland, who voted against joining the compact last year, said at points during the hearing that she was puzzled by the arguments put forward by supporters and asked if candidates would continue to overlook less populated places like Maine in favor of visits to urban areas.

“I have to admit that I can’t get to a place where I can convince myself that I’m not voting against the interest of Maine voters when I vote in support of the national compact,” Duson said.