Live Election Results: LIVE Maine Election Results, Latest Exit Polls Data

Impact
By Robert Glover

Maine is an important state in the 2012 elections. Maine voters are facing a referendum that would legalize same sex marriage. In addition, there is a three-way race to replace the exiting Senator Olympia Snowe. Because of the manner in which Maine "splits" its electoral votes, there is the potential for Romney to pick up an electoral vote in Maine's 2nd district, which could prove important in this tight presidential race. 

PolicyMic will be covering the 2012 election from the state of Maine live. For live updates, bookmark and refresh this page.

UPDATE: 7:06 PM First projections coming in. VT to Obama. KY to Romney. A host of states still too close to call. No surprises yet (though exit polls show a 49%-49% tie in VA...Eeek!). 

 

UPDATE: 7:09 PM The pro-marriage equality lobster in the graphic above is a little tricky. Question 1 in Maine deals with same-sex marriage and a YES would support the recognition of same sex marriage. This lobster telling people to vote NO on question 1, is from the 2009 initiative. 

See my article on the history of this here: 

Maine Polls: Ballot Question 1 Polls Indicate Voters Will Approve Same Sex Marriage

 

UPDATE: 7:14 PM We still don't know anything...the wonkosphere spins its wheels. 

UPDATE: 7:20 PM 40 Minutes until the polls close in Maine. 

 

UPDATE: 7:26 PM Romney wins Indiana. In other news...trees are made of wood. 

 

UPDATE: 7:29 PM Exit polls in Ohio showing Obama by three points. If Obama ends up taking Ohio, things become infinitely harder for Mitt. 

 

UPDATE: 7:36 PM While we wait...the Onion my IV drip of humor and sanity at moments such as this: Which Presidential Candidate Are We Voting For? | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

 

UPDATE: 7:43 PM These obscure precinct results are like telling someone who asks you about the weather, "I DRIVE A BLUE CAR!" 

 

UPDATE: 7:49 PM BDN is reporting strong turnout in Maine, however it's doubtful that turnout will match 2008 (72%). 

 Turnout strong at Maine polling sites — Politics — Bangor Daily News — BDN Maine

 

UPDATE: 7:58 PM With our polls about to close, a reminder of why Maine's 2nd district is of particular significance in this election: Electoral College 2012: How a Presidential Poll in Maine Could Signal Possible Election Day Chaos 

 

UPDATE: 8:01 PM CNN projects 3 out of 4 Maine's electoral votes for Obama. 2nd district still up in the air. No surprises there. 

 

UPDATE: 8:11 PM Not sure what the first precinct that came in Maine was but it apparently has 20 people and used to part of the deep South. Ongoing results at the BDN: Maine 2012 General Election results — Bangor Daily News — BDN Maine

 

UPDATE: 8:13 PM Romney takes Georgia! Also...ice is frozen water. 

 

UPDATE: 8:30 PM Wolf Blitzer is far too excited about Arkansas and Tennessee. Chill out, Wolf. 

 

UPDATE: 8:40 PM Bangor Daily News streaming elections results are crashing. Damn you civically minded Mainers!! (Actually, I take that back. You're great. Love, Rob).  

 

UPDATE: 8:46 PM Sidebar: unrelated to Maine. How does Florida always manage to screw up voting and ballots? 

 

UPDATE: 8:55 PM Beware putting too much stock on early numbers on Question # 1 (same sex marriage). The smaller (more conservative) precincts in Central and Northern Maine are much easier to count than the more populous (and liberal/progressive) areas in Southern Maine. Early results will trend No and then start to flip as it gets later in the night. 

 

UPDATE: 9:01 PM Michigan to Obama. How that one became a swing state in the minds of some I'll never understand. Not surprising for me, but I imagine the Fox News crowd is screaming and sobbing. 

 

UPDATE: 9:10 PM Sidebar. With an ocean of metaphors at our disposal, is there any excuse for using an abomination like "reverse coattails?" What does that even mean?  

 

UPDATE: 9:17 PM Fox projects that Obama gets PA. Ruh roh...Romney folks thought they might have had a shot there. 

 

UPDATE: 9:48 PM AP calling House Dist. 1 for Chellie Pingree. Pingree making her acceptance speech as we speak. (And her daughter Hannah is apparently having a baby any minute now). Not a bad night for the Pingrees. 

 

UPDATE: 9:52 PM NBC calling New Hampshire for Obama. Wolf Blitzer and John King staring at Florida looking sad, because it ain't looking good for Romney (and thus CNN can't milk coverage of the lack of a decisive outcome for many hours or days). 

 

UPDATE: 10:06 PM Elizabeth Warren projected winner in MA. That was a hard-fought race. Shaping up to be a depressing night for the Republicans. 

 

UPDATE: 10:13 PM McCaskill beats Akin in Missouri. Prior to Akin's "legitimate rape" comments some polls had him up by double digits. This is a stunning turnaround. (Now mathematically impossible for Republicans to take the Senate). 

 

UPDATE: 10:18 PM Tammy Baldwin projected to become the first openly gay Senator in US history with a win in Wisconsin. CNN all but calling the presidential election for Obama at this point: Voters don’t care that Tammy Baldwin is gay. 

 

UPDATE: 10:28 PM ABC projecting Wisconsin for Obama. The path to the presidency is all but closed for Romney at this point. See: Wisconsin 2012 Election Results: According to NBC, Wisconsin Goes Obama

 

UPDATE: 10:51 PM Obama takes MN, Mitt takes AZ. Getting close now. This is going to be an early one. 

 

UPDATE: 11:23 PM I'll be honest. I didn't expect the presidential election to be over this quickly. I figured Ohio and Florida's issues with voting would hold us up until the early morning hours. I think the things we need to remember now are that the democratic process is about "institutionalized uncertainty"--we don't know the outcomes, but we respect the institutions, and we respect our opponents, whether we are victorious or not. Given the political climate of this country right now, I suspect this will be lost on many and I'm going to be fearful the types of extremism we see in the next few days and the next four years. Let's hope I'm wrong. 

 

UPDATE: 11:36 PM And Maine's 2nd didn't ever really come close to going for Romney. So much for that idea.

 

UPDATE: 11:43 PM On Maine's new Senator, Angus King: Maine Election Results: Angus King Takes Senate Seat Left by Olympia Snowe

 

UPDATE: 12:14 AM AP projecting that same-sex marriage will pass in the state of Maine, making it the first state in history in which the voters have passed a legal recognition of same-sex marriage (in all other states this was done through the courts or the legislature). This is a historic moment for Maine: Maine votes in favor of legalizing gay marriage - US News and World Report

 

UPDATE: 1:09 AM It's been an awfully long day, everyone. Still lots of ME state races up for grabs. Looking forward to reading all about them tomorrow morning:  Maine 2012 General Election results — Bangor Daily News — BDN Maine. Good night, all.