Peter Mills

Qualifications for public financing in gubernatorial races will be put under the microscope Friday by the Maine Ethics Commission.

In 2006, five candidates ran for governor in the general election – a Republican, a Democrat, a Green and two Independents. Three ran under the Maine Clean Elections Act.

Since then, several bills have come before the legislature seeking to tighten restrictions on who can qualify for public financing in gubernatorial races. As a result, the Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee asked the Ethics Commission to look at the issue and come back with recommendations by October of this year.

The commission will hold a public hearing on the issue Friday at 9 a.m. Click here for the hearing materials and the full information on the pending proposal.

I’m not sure, but I think the domain name scramble for Governor has begun, with the reservation of www.rowe2010.com and www.roweforgovernor.com.

First it was Senator Bill Diamond, then John Nutting and now Senator Nancy Sullivan has decided to test the waters in the “one vote makes a difference” side show that has plagued the 18-17 Senate.

UPDATED Apr. 2 at 9:30 p.m. with more details on the debate

The state Senate passed a bill Wednesday allowing Maine to participate in the National Popular Vote interstate compact. The bill will next go before the House for consideration.  read more »

PolitickerME asked six Republicans in the Legislature how they were feeling about the budget that passed. Responding in the video below: Senate Minority Leader Carol Weston, R-Montville; House Minority Leader Josh Tardy, R-Newport; Sen. Peter Mills, R-Cornville; Sen. Karl Turner, R-Cumberland, a member of the Appropriations Committee; Rep. Michael Vaughan, R-Durham; and Rep. John McDonough, R-Scarborough.

Just beneath the surface in the Maine Senate there is angst, and the cause is Senator Bill Diamond.

State Senator Kevin Raye will lead Rudy Giuliani’s campaign in Maine. Mitt Romney’s campaign also announced its steering committee this week.

The Giuliani camp announced their Maine leadership team today. Raye’s wife, Karen Raye, is the State Chair of Women for Rudy. She is also Maine’s Republican National Committeewoman.

Other members of the leadership team are:

A Democratic Skowhegan husband and wife team has come under scrutiny for possible misuse of almost $3,000 in Clean Elections funds.

Paul Hatch ran for State Senate in District 26, losing to Republican Peter Mills by 3,706 votes. His wife, Pamela Hatch, ran for House District 85, losing to Republican Donna Finley by 335 votes.

According to a memo from Jonathan Wayne, executive director of the state ethics commission, the Hatch’s couldn’t show proof of $2,973.54 of public funding between their campaigns.

Wow – now there’s a match-up that will have the Washington insiders scrambling to find ways to funnel money in to Maine’s second Congressional District. John Frary, is a feisty, intellectual tucked away in the Farmington foothills – spending his days sipping scotch and posting amusing and often funny posts in newspapers and online forums. Considering the current state of the Republican Party here in Maine, that would be considered vigorous campaigning. In addition, Mr. Frary may be the only man in the history of the Republican Party to be endorsed by Professor Jon Reisman and Senator Peter Mills.

While America grows tired of the Bush and (maybe) Clinton dynasties running the country, Mainers too are feeling their own form of dynasty fatigue...

Consider the following:

* While former State Senator Chellie Pingree is working her Washington DC network to pummel Ethan Strimling and maintain the frontrunner status in the Democratic nomination for the first US Congressional district, her daughter, Hannah Pingree, is anxiously awaiting the next legislative session, when the blonde bombshell will more than likely become the next Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives.