The time has come to popularly elect Maine's top officials

Sen. Bruce Bickford represents Auburn, Durham and Poland in Androscoggin County and New Gloucester in Cumberland County. He is the Senate Republican lead for the Legislature's Taxation Committee. He served in the Maine House of Representatives during the 124th –125th Legislatures and the 127th-130th Legislatures. Well, what do you know. Opinion columnist Steve Collins and I actually agree on something. Yes, I know it's rare. But when he's finally right on something, it's a cause for celebration. What I'm referring to, of course, is Collins' recent column about how we elect the state's attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer and auditor ('It's time for Maine to let voters fill key state positions instead of the Legislature,' Aug. 24). Collins is right that those decisions are made by lawmakers through an insular closed-door process once a new Legislature is seated; this takes place after the November elections in even-numbered years. That will happen this December when the 133rd Legislature convenes for the first time. Maine is the only state where these powerful state officers — three constitutional and one established by statute in the case of the state auditor — are chosen exclusively by the Legislature and often involve alliances within the party in power. Nearly all officers in recent years have been former legislators, party insiders or even current lawmakers, which was the case with our current state treasurer after he won reelection to the Legislature in 2024. The process itself, a non-transparent secret ballot election, is more a result of backroom dealmaking and breeds mistrust because of partisan influence and the lack of the natural vetting process and scrutiny that accompanies traditional popular elections. It's a closed process that rewards party loyalty regardless of the actual qualifications of the individual. That was front and center when State Auditor Matthew Dunlap had to resign his position after failing exams to gain the requisite credentials to hold the position. And to be Maine's attorney general, all you have to do is be a member in good standing of the Maine bar. As Aaron Frey proves, no prosecutorial experience is needed. Oh, did I mention both are former lawmakers? It's easy to see how the public may view this process as nothing more than a reward system for former lawmakers who either reach their term limit, lose an election or are simply seeking to pad their pension. This is no way to elect these critical officers, and so much is at stake. The process itself, a non-transparent secret ballot election, breeds mistrust because of partisan influence. These officers serve critical public roles, from being Maine's top prosecutor and litigant to overseeing all aspects of Maine's election, corporation and motor vehicles operations, and from managing the state's treasury to keeping state government honest through proper auditing. These are not merely administrative positions. As Republicans have said previously, these officers have considerable power and policy influence and no accountability but for the party in power. Moving the responsibility for the election of these officers to the people is something Republicans have been advocating for years. In fact, legislative Republicans and, yes, even two Democrats, put in no fewer than nine bills this session to do just that. Unfortunately, all were shot down by the overall Democratic majority. It is time for the public whose lives are affected by these top roles in state government to have a say in who fills them. Any government position that has direct power and influence over a populace should be elected by it. Additionally, statewide elections would allow for transparency and integrity, increase accountability to the people and provide the proper scrutiny to vet those who may not be qualified for the respective positions. We can make that change easily for our statutory state auditor. However, a constitutional amendment is required for the other three. It's a high bar that requires two-thirds of the Legislature to agree. But if I can agree with Steve Collins, well, anything is possible.