AUGUSTA, MAINE – Secretary of State Shenna Bellows announced Thursday that the 2025 Maine Citizen’s Guide to the Referendum Election is now available. The guide can be easily accessed online from the home page of maine.gov/sos. Printed copies are being distributed to municipal offices and public libraries across the state.

The guide, prepared by the Department of the Secretary of State in collaboration with the Office of the Attorney General, the Office of the Maine State Treasurer, and Office of Fiscal and Program Review, is an unbiased and non-partisan review of the questions voters will consider at the polls this November.  

The Citizen’s Guide provides detailed information about each referendum question on the November ballot, including:

• The referendum questions
• The legislation each question represents
• A summary of the intent and content of the legislation
• An explanation of the significance of a “yes” or “no” vote
• An estimate of the fiscal impact of each referendum question on state revenues,
• Appropriations and allocations
• Public comments filed in support of or in opposition to each ballot measure

"There are two impactful questions that voters are being asked to decide this fall," said Secretary Bellows. "This guide is designed to be a neutral and nonpartisan resource for interested voters so that they can fully investigate those questions and make informed decisions about how they choose to vote on them.”

Voters will be asked to decide on two citizen initiatives on the Nov. 4, 2025, ballot: 

QUESTION 1: “Do you want to change Maine election laws to eliminate two days of absentee voting, prohibit requests for absentee ballots by phone or family members, end ongoing absentee voter status for seniors and people with disabilities, ban prepaid postage on absentee ballot return envelopes, limit the number of drop boxes, require voters to show certain photo ID before voting, and make other changes to our elections?”

QUESTION 2: “Do you want to allow courts to temporarily prohibit a person from having dangerous weapons if law enforcement, family, or household members show that the person poses a significant danger of causing physical injury to themselves or others?”

Information about upcoming elections can be found at maine.gov/sos/elections-voting.