| As Maine Goes, So Goes The Country |
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"As Maine goes, so goes the country" or "'''As Maine goes, so goes the nation'''" was a phrase in wide currency at one time in United States Politics . The origin of this phrase lies in the Political Science theory that Maine was a Bellwether state for Presidential Elections . Maine held its presidential election in September , not November as did the other states, on the premise that inclement weather endemic in much of Maine by November made voting at that time of year impractical. (The U.S. Constitution only requires that all '' Electors '' for President cast their votes on the same day—the states are empowered by Congress to decide when to hold the popular vote that chooses those electors.) As the Maine winner in September had proven to be the national winner in November on many occasions, candidates often went to considerable lengths in their attempts to carry Maine, despite the state's relatively small population (and hence elector count) and somewhat remote location. In the September 1936 Presidential Election , Maine voted for Republican nominee and Kansas Governor Alf Landon over President Franklin Delano Roosevelt , causing the Republicans to trumpet this phrase. However, in November, only Vermont joined Maine, giving Landon only eight electoral votes (the three from Vermont and the five from Maine), equalling the smallest total ever ( As Of 2004 ) won by a major-party nominee since the beginning of the current U.S. Two-party System in the 1850s , and destroying the credibility of the phrase permanently. (Maine's tradition of early presidential voting did not end until 1960 , however.) Democratic political operative James Farley rewrote the phrase, proclaiming "As Maine goes, so goes Vermont." In 1957 , Maine changed its election law to hold all General Election s in November. |
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