OAN’s Roy Francis
7:53 AM – Thursday, July 20, 2023
Democratic Governor Janet Mills vetoed a bill which was aimed at banning foreign influence in the state of Maine elections.
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State law bans foreign nationals and companies from donating to any candidate’s campaign in the state, however they currently do not address referendums. The bill addressed this loophole.
It was introduced after a Canadian-based company, Hydro-Quebec, spent millions fighting voters’ decision to prevent a $1 billion transmission line project. The project was introduced to bring the company’s hydropower to New England.
On Wednesday, Mills vetoed the bill and backed her decision in her veto letter in which she said that she was concerned about the constitutionality of the bill, and that she feared the language of the bill was too broad that it could be used against “legitimate voices.”
The governor also said that the bill “creates a bureaucratic morass that will entrap and silence otherwise legitimate voices and undermine the fundamental American cornerstones of free speech and free press.”
The governor vetoed a similar bill in 2021 which was also aimed at preventing foreign influence in state campaigns.
However, even after the governor vetoed the bill, voters will get the final say if the veto is sustained by the lawmakers within the next week.
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By: OAN
