Thanks! Of course this begs the question why ME was so much more Democratic than NH in the first place. Why did it vote several points to the left of NH until 2016? It’s always struck me as a state that’s more Democratic than it "should be," especially considering the success ME Republicans have had downballot even after 1992.
1. Maine is historically an anti-war state going back to the War of 1812.
2. Maine is rather secular though more religious than the rest of New England.
3. Maine is historically a protectionist state and both of the Maine ladies were protectionists who opposed NAFTA IIRC.
4. Maine has historically rejected fiscal hawks/lassiez faire emphasized Republicanism. Wilkie under-performed in Maine 1940 partially because of pro-British sentiment and partially because of his criticism of the New Deal. Romney also did very badly in Maine as well, and worse then Bush who empasized "Compassionate Conservatism". Maine Republicanism was a legacy product of Republican's economic nationalism and civil war voting legacy. From the late 1960's until the 2000's, Republicans really didn't have much to offer and so the state trended Democratic and Kevin Phillips predicted it would become a Democratic state back in the late 1960's.
4. Why would a Republican party dominated by sunbelt suburbs, evangelicals, neocons and free traders do well in Maine?
5. Why wouldn't a Republican Party that is more nationalist and focused on non-college whites not gain a lot of ground in Maine?
