AUGUSTA, Maine (WABI) – Democrat Matt Dunlap has conceded to Republican Paul LePage in the race for Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, which will be ranked as a ranked choice.
The secretary of state’s office said Thursday that no candidate received a majority of votes and that the law requires them to do a ranked-choice ranking, even if a candidate concedes.
Vote totals
According to state figures, Republican Paul LePage received 170,263 votes, or 49.9%. Democrat Matt Dunlap received 164,845 votes, or 48.3%.
Candidates declared in writing received 123 votes, or 0.036%. There were more than 6,000 blank votes cast during the race.
Candidate responses
On Wednesday afternoon, LePage declared victory in the race. Dunlap then responded by saying he was too close to follow.
Lepage’s campaign released this statement:
“I have spoken with Secretary Bellows and we are aware that early indications are that a small number of blank votes and registrations for this race may trigger ranked-choice voting based on their interpretation of the law.
“It is very clear from the work of our campaign team yesterday, talking one-on-one with local clerks, and from the publicly available numbers, that Paul LePage is the Congressman-elect.
“Paul’s vote margin is extremely large. Decision Desk headquarters alone reports that Paul LePage has more than 4,400 votes more than Mr. Dunlap. This is consistent with our campaign’s estimate yesterday of a 4,500-vote lead when Paul declared victory.
“Paul LePage looks forward to working for all the people of Maine’s 2sd District. He will work with anyone, regardless of party, to put Maine first.
Dunlap conceded in a statement. His campaign does not currently believe ranked-choice voting will change the results of the race.
“This is not the outcome we were hoping for, and I am disappointed that we did not succeed. Congratulations to Paul LePage, I wish him the best. I want to thank all the volunteers who knocked on doors, made calls and made their voices heard. Your support has inspired me and I am honored to have worked alongside you over the past year,” Dunlap said.
Tabulation schedule
The priority tabulation process will begin at 10 a.m. Monday at the Maine Department of Public Safety headquarters in Augusta.
It is open to the public and will be broadcast live on the Secretary of State’s YouTube channel.
For complete election results, click here.
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