Newsweek - Millions of Americans across at least 11 states are being urged to stay indoors and limit outdoor activity as dangerous air quality alerts are in place across parts of the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Southern California. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), air quality alerts stretch across states including New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland—as well as parts of Southern California, where wildfire smoke is worsening conditions. ...Most alerts remain in effect from Tuesday morning through Tuesday evening.
Mainebiz - The Manufacturers Association of Maine is launching a registered machinist apprenticeship program at Align Precision’s Arundel factory. The Arizona-headquartered company employs 103 people in Maine.
The effort aims to address a workforce shortage in one of manufacturing’s most critical and in-demand occupations. Recently approved by the Maine Department of Labor as an intermediary sponsor for registered apprenticeships, the Portland-based trade group is leading the initiative.
“Machinists play a critical role in advanced manufacturing and the defense industrial base supply chain,” said John Lewis, executive director of the Manufacturers Association of Maine.
Mainebiz - A new outdoor sculpture park is slated for installation adjacent to University of Southern Maine’s Crewe Center for the Arts in Portland.
The USM Foundation said the park was initiated by a gift of $500,000 from 1976 graduate David Shaw to the Crewe Center, along with the donation of Shaw’s own bronze sculptures, the Amaras, to anchor the new space.
Shaw’s gift was the opening contribution to the USM Foundation’s recently launched Crescendo Campaign, a fundraising initiative designed to putCrewe on the map for creative education and performance.
News Center Maine - The June 9 primary election is three weeks away. Polls close at 8 p.m. that day, but Chief Deputy Secretary of State Kate McBrien says you should check with your specific polling location to see what time doors open because it can vary. If you are voting absentee, the deadline to request one is June 4. McBrien recommends making a plan to physically drop the ballot off at your polling location on Election Day.
"In order to have your vote counted through an absentee ballot, you actually have to have your ballot in the hands of the clerk by 8 p.m. on Election Day," McBrien said. "So in Maine, as opposed to some other states, it doesn't matter when you mailed it, it has to arrive and be accepted and in the hands of the municipality where you're voting."
McBrien said you can also track your absentee ballot on the secretary of state's website.
"You can see when you've requested it, that that request has been accepted by your town clerk," McBrien explained. "You can see when they've mailed it out to you, so that you know to be watching for it in the mail, and then if you mail it back in or you drop it in the drop box, you can actually see when they've accepted it again."
As for how to vote for a particular party, Maine has a semi-open primary. That means you don't have to be registered to a particular party, but you have to pick one party when you go to the polls.
"If you are a registered voter, registered to a specific party, if you're a Republican, if you're a Democrat, if you're a Green Independent, if you're a Libertarian, that's the primary that you vote in, you get the ballot for that party," McBrien said. "But if you are unenrolled, which means you're a registered voter but you haven't enrolled in a party, you actually get to choose which ballot you vote with."
If you haven't registered to vote ahead of time, McBrien said you can do so when you head to the polls.
"As long as you've already registered to vote with your town, that's where you've shown your ID, your proof of residence, your proof of identity, and your proof of citizenship, or at least checked off that you are a citizen," McBrien said. "If you are not yet registered to vote, you can actually go to the polling location and register to vote at that location that day, but again, just, you know, bring some proof of identity, some proof of residency, and then otherwise, that's it."
Maine Morning Star - Graham Platner, the presumptive Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate from Maine, is known for a few things: his “more Bernie than Bernie” message of wresting back control from the rich and powerful; his biography as a Marine Corps veteran and oyster farmer with limited political experience; and his history of controversial and offensive online commentary and tattoos.
Climate champion? Not so much. But in recent weeks, Platner, who has talked about finding peace from some of his post-combat demons and political disillusionment while working on the clear blue waters of the Gulf of Maine, has started to roll out a message of protecting both the planet and pocketbooks, including through an energy plan released last week.
“We need to get off fossil fuels, not just for its impact on the environment and climate,” Platner told Inside Climate News in a summary of that plan. “We need to get off fossil fuels because that would make America self-sustaining.”
With the departure of Maine’s Governor Janet Mills, a candidate with a strong record of supporting renewable energy, Platner is the presumptive Democratic nominee, although a third candidate with a strong environmental record, David Costello, remains in the primary race.
Maine Democrats - A whopping $1.7 million was recently dropped into the Maine Governor's race to prop up MAGA extremist Garrett Mason. The billionaire pulling the strings? Richard Uihlein. He's an anti-abortion extremist who gave $49 million to Donald Trump and MAGA-affiliated PACs in 2024 and has supported far-right, anti-choice candidates like Ted Cruz, Lauren Boebert, Josh Hawley, and now Garrett Mason. We can't allow our future to be one in which the wealthy elite can buy our voice from us.
Maine Historical Society - In 1825, the Marquis de Lafayette, Revolutionary War hero and friend of George Washington, visited Maine, cementing our state's place in the Revolutionary War story. Thousands turned out to honor the man who had risked his life and fortune for American independence. Last month, Portland unveiled a commemorative plaque at Bramhall Square, the very spot where Lafayette addressed the crowd during his 1825 visit. Read the Lafayette story
Maine Historical Society - As we approach July 4th—the actual 250th—and a busy year of commemoration, it’s time to gear up and get ready. MHS has a primer for you—resources online and in our Pathways to Freedom exhibit—to help you get oriented, learn the basics about Maine’s role in the Revolution, explore what Mainers thought in 1776, and consider what the Declaration of Independence means to Mainers today.
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the weather warms, Maine rescue workers emphasize hiker safety
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reactiom to changes in Medicaid services for children with disabilities
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Overall: Platner +7
Male: Collins +3
Graham Platner (+3)
Susan Collins (-18)