Gov. Paul LePage said Monday he welcomes college students who want to become Maine residents and vote here.
But he didn’t sound especially welcoming.
LePage warned students not to vote in Maine and back home in another state.
“Casting ballots in two different states is voter fraud, which is why Maine law requires anyone voting here to establish residency here,” the governor said in a statement issued Monday.
“We welcome college students establishing residency in our great state, as long as they follow all laws that regulate voting, motor vehicles and taxes. We cannot tolerate voter fraud in our state,” he said.
The governor’s comments followed the disclosure this weekend of an effort to scare Bates College students from heading to the polls Tuesday.
In a move called “a deliberate attempt at voter suppression” by Bates President Clayton Spencer, fliers appeared in the college’s dorms and dining hall falsely warning students they could be in legal jeopardy if they vote without also getting a Maine driver’s license and registering their vehicles in the state. The warning is not true.
LePage said Democrats “have encouraged college students from out of state to vote in Maine, even though there is no way to determine whether these college students also voted in their home states.”
Democrats blamed Republicans for the mystery fliers and pointed to a long history of GOP efforts to keep students from voting in Maine. Maine GOP officials said they had nothing to do with the fliers.
Generally, people can vote in Maine if they consider themselves residents, including out-of state students living in Maine to go to college. They cannot vote anywhere else and also cast a ballot in Maine.
LePage said that after the election, “we will do everything we can that is allowed under state and federal law to verify college students who voted here are following Maine law, which is clearly displayed on the Secretary of State’s website.”
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More coverage: Secretary of state addresses students about voting | Voter suppression effort decried at Bates College
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