Everything you need to know about ranked-choice voting in one spot.Click to learn more!

Maine State Senate District 27

From Ballotpedia
State Legislatures Navigation

Maine State Senate District 27
Incumbent
Assumed office: December 6, 2022

Maine State Senate District 27 is represented byJill Duson (D).

As of the 2020 Census, Maine state senators represented an average of38,959 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented38,088 residents.

About the chamber

Members of theMaine State Senate servetwo-year terms withterm limits.[1] Maine legislators assume office the day before the first Wednesday of December following the general election.[2][3]

Qualifications

See also:State legislature candidate requirements by state

Section 6 of Part 2 of Article 4 of theMaine Constitution states, "The Senators shall be 25 years of age at the commencement of the term, for which they are elected, and in all other respects their qualifications shall be the same as those of the Representatives."[4]

Section 4 of Part 1 of Article 4 of theMaine Constitution states, "Qualifications; residency requirement. No person shall be a member of the House of Representatives, unless the person shall, at the commencement of the period for which the person is elected, have been 5 years a citizen of the United States, have arrived at the age of 21 years, have been a resident in this State one year; and for the 3 months next preceding the time of this person's election shall have been, and, during the period for which elected, shall continue to be a resident in the district which that person represents.

No person may be a candidate for election as a member of the House of Representatives unless, at the time of the nomination for placement on a primary, general or special election ballot, that person is a resident in the district which the candidate seeks to represent."[4]


Salaries

See also:Comparison of state legislative salaries
State legislative salaries, 2025[5]
SalaryPer diem
$25,000 for the first regular session. $20,000 for the second regular session.$70/day for lodging (or round-trip mileage up to $0.55/mile in lieu of housing, plus tolls). $50/day for meals.

Term limits

See also:State legislatures with term limits

TheMaine legislature is one of16 state legislatures with term limits. Voters enacted theMaine Term Limits Act in 1993. That initiative said that Maine senators are subject toterm limits of no more than four two-year terms, or a total of eight years.

The first year that theterm limits enacted in 1993 impacted the ability of incumbents to run for office was in 1996.[1]


Vacancies

See also:How vacancies are filled in state legislatures

If there is a vacancy in theMaine State Legislature, a special election must be held to fill the vacant seat.[6][7] Thegovernor must call for an election and inform political committees of the nomination deadline.[8][6][7] The person elected to the seat serves for the remainder of the unexpired term.[9]

DocumentIcon.jpgSee sources:Maine Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 21-A, § 382Maine Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 21-A, §366 andMaine Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 21-A, § 381


District map

Redistricting

2020 redistricting cycle

See also:Redistricting in Maine after the 2020 census

On September 29, 2021, Gov.Janet Mills (D) signed legislation enacting redrawn state legislative district boundaries. The Maine Apportionment Commission approved final maps and submitted them to the legislature on September 27, 2021. TheMaine Senate unanimously approved both maps by a vote of 31-0. TheMaine House of Representatives approved new district boundaries for the state Senate by a vote of 129-0 and new state House district boundaries by a vote of 119-10.[10] These maps took effect for Maine’s 2022 legislative elections.

The Maine Wire reported, "The legislature made no changes to the maps the Apportionment Commission submitted, but some legislators did express dissatisfaction with the way districts had been drawn."[11] Some lawmakers objected to changes made to the composition of their districts, such asBen Collings (D). After the plans were approved, Collings said, "“I did my best to work with the [apportionment] committee and use the process to make those changes.” “Unfortunately that did not come together for the district I represent.”[10]

How does redistricting in Maine work? In Maine, both congressional and state legislative district boundaries are drawn by the state legislature. An advisory commission is also involved in the process. A two-thirds majority is required to approve new district maps, which are subject to veto by thegovernor.[12]

The composition of the 15-member advisory redistricting commission is as follows:[12]

  1. The majority and minority leaders of theMaine State Senate each select two commissioners.
  2. The majority and minority leaders of theMaine House of Representatives each appoint three commissioners.
  3. The chairs of the state's two major political parties (i.e., theRepublican andDemocratic parties) each appoint one member.
  4. The aforementioned 12 commissioners appoint two more members from the public, "with each party's representatives coordinating to choose one commissioner."
  5. The two public commissioners appoint one additional member.

This commission may make recommendations to the state legislature regarding redistricting, but the legislature is not bound to abide by the commission's recommendations.If the state legislature is unable to pass a redistricting plan, the responsibility falls to theMaine Supreme Court.[12]

State statutes require that congressional districts be compact and contiguous, In addition, state laws require that congressional districts "cross political subdivision lines as few times as possible."[12]

TheMaine Constitution mandates that state legislative districts be "compact and contiguous, and that they cross political subdivision lines as few times as possible."[12]

Maine State Senate District 27
until December 6, 2022

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Maine State Senate District 27
starting December 7, 2022

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Elections

2026

See also: Maine State Senate elections, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on June 9, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for Maine State Senate District 27

IncumbentJill Duson (D) is running in the Democratic primary for Maine State Senate District 27 on June 9, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Jill Duson
Jill Duson

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined.

Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

2024

See also: Maine State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for Maine State Senate District 27

IncumbentJill Duson defeatedDale Holman in the general election for Maine State Senate District 27 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jill Duson
Jill Duson (D)
 
77.2
 
16,500
Dale Holman (R)
 
22.8
 
4,876

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 21,376
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic Primary for Maine State Senate District 27

The following candidates advanced in theranked-choice voting election:Jill Duson in round 1 .

  
Candidate
%
Total Votes
Transfer
Round eliminated
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Jill-Duson.PNG
Jill Duson
 
89.3
 
1,8500Advanced (1)
Ken A. Capron
 
10.7
 
22101

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 2,071
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Republican primary election

Republican Primary for Maine State Senate District 27

The following candidates advanced in theranked-choice voting election:Dale Holman in round 1 .

  
Candidate
%
Total Votes
Transfer
Round eliminated
Dale Holman
 
100
 
5020Advanced (1)

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 502
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

2022

See also:Maine State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for Maine State Senate District 27

Jill Duson defeatedJeffrey Tounge in the general election for Maine State Senate District 27 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jill Duson
Jill Duson (D)
 
77.9
 
14,225
Jeffrey Tounge (R)
 
22.1
 
4,041

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 18,266
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic Primary for Maine State Senate District 27

The following candidates advanced in theranked-choice voting election:Jill Duson in round 1 .

  
Candidate
%
Total Votes
Transfer
Round eliminated
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Jill-Duson.PNG
Jill Duson
 
89.7
 
3,2330Advanced (1)
Ken A. Capron
 
10.3
 
37201

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 3,605
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Republican primary election

Republican Primary for Maine State Senate District 27

The following candidates advanced in theranked-choice voting election:Jeffrey Tounge in round 1 .

  
Candidate
%
Total Votes
Transfer
Round eliminated
Jeffrey Tounge
 
100
 
6040Advanced (1)

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 604
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

2020

See also:Maine State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Maine State Senate District 27

IncumbentBenjamin Chipman won election in the general election for Maine State Senate District 27 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Benjamin Chipman
Benjamin Chipman (D)
 
100.0
 
21,813

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 21,813
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic Primary for Maine State Senate District 27

The following candidates advanced in theranked-choice voting election:Benjamin Chipman in round 1 .

  
Candidate
%
Total Votes
Transfer
Round eliminated
Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Benjamin_Chipman_portrait.jpg
Benjamin Chipman
 
100
 
9,1230Advanced (1)

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 9,123
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

2018

See also:Maine State Senate elections, 2018

General election

General election for Maine State Senate District 27

IncumbentBenjamin Chipman defeatedCrystal Canney in the general election for Maine State Senate District 27 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Benjamin Chipman
Benjamin Chipman (D)
 
74.9
 
14,858
Crystal Canney (Independent)
 
25.1
 
4,975

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 19,833
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Maine State Senate District 27

IncumbentBenjamin Chipman advanced from the Democratic primary for Maine State Senate District 27 on June 12, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Benjamin Chipman
Benjamin Chipman
 
100.0
 
6,014

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 6,014
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Maine State Senate District 27

Joshua Kelton advanced from the Republican primary for Maine State Senate District 27 on June 12, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Joshua Kelton
 
100.0
 
663

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 663
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

2016

See also:Maine State Senate elections, 2016

Elections for theMaine State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 14, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 15, 2016.[13]IncumbentJustin Alfond (D) did not seek re-election because of term-limits.

Benjamin Chipman defeatedSeth Baker andAdam Pontius in the Maine State Senate District 27 general election.[14]

Maine State Senate, District 27 General Election, 2016
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngBenjamin Chipman67.24%14,929
    GreenSeth Baker16.72%3,712
    RepublicanAdam Pontius16.04%3,562
Total Votes22,203
Source:Maine Secretary of State


Benjamin Chipman defeatedCharles Radis andDiane Russell in the Maine State Senate District 27 Democratic primary.[15][16]

Maine State Senate, District 27 Democratic Primary, 2016
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngBenjamin Chipman53.04%1,778
    DemocraticCharles Radis23.78%797
    DemocraticDiane Russell23.18%777
Total Votes3,352


Mark Lockman ran unopposed in the Maine State Senate District 27 Republican primary.[15][16]

Maine State Senate, District 27 Republican Primary, 2016
PartyCandidate
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngMark Lockman (unopposed)


2014

See also:Maine State Senate elections, 2014

Elections for theMaine State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on June 10, 2014, and a general election was held onNovember 4, 2014. Thesignature filing deadline for party candidates wishing to run in this election was March 17, 2014. The deadline for write-in candidates to run in the primary election was April 28, 2014, and the deadline for non-party candidates to run in the general election was June 2, 2014. District 8 incumbentJustin Alfond was unopposed in the Democratic primary.Peter Doyle was unopposed in the Republican primary. Alfond defeated Doyle andAsher Platts (G) in the general election.[17][18][19][20]

Maine State Senate District 27, General Election, 2014
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    DemocraticGreen check mark transparent.pngJustin AlfondIncumbent64.4%11,376
    GreenAsher Platts16.1%2,852
    RepublicanPeter Doyle14.8%2,612
    None Blank Votes4.7%827
Total Votes17,667

2012

See also:Maine State Senate elections, 2012

Elections for the office ofMaine State Senate consisted of a primary election on June 12, 2012, and a general election onNovember 6, 2012. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 15, 2012. IncumbentDouglas Thomas (R) defeatedHerbert Clark (D) in the general election. Neither candidate faced opposition in their primary.[21][22]

Maine State Senate, District 27, General Election, 2012
PartyCandidateVote %Votes
    RepublicanGreen check mark transparent.pngDouglas ThomasIncumbent92.4%97,481
    Democratic Herbert Clark7.6%8,061
Total Votes105,542

Campaign contributions

From 2000 to 2024, candidates for Maine State Senate District 27 raised a total of $768,957. Candidates who raised money in contributions earned $21,360 on average. All figures come fromFollow the Money

Campaign contributions, Maine State Senate District 27
YearAmountCandidatesAverage
2024$39,3813$13,127
2022$43,9233$14,641
2020$6,9751$6,975
2018$120,6633$40,221
2016$154,0466$25,674
2014$44,2983$14,766
2012$41,3602$20,680
2010$49,8712$24,936
2008$45,9082$22,954
2006$61,1603$20,387
2004$53,8012$26,901
2002$54,8904$13,723
2000$52,6812$26,341
Total$768,95736$21,360


See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. 1.01.1ncsl.org, "Chart of Term Limits States," accessed December 16, 2013Cite error: Invalid<ref> tag; name "limits" defined multiple times with different content
  2. Maine Constitution, "Article IV. Part First., Section 2," accessed November 1, 2021
  3. Maine Constitution, "Article IV. Part Second., Section 5," accessed November 1, 2021
  4. 4.04.1Maine State Constitution, "Article IV," accessed May 21, 2025
  5. National Conference of State Legislatures, "2025 Legislator Compensation," December 2, 2025
  6. 6.06.1Maine Legislature, "Maine Revised Statutes," accessed February 11, 2021(Statute 21A-381)
  7. 7.07.1Maine Legislature, "Maine Revised Statutes," accessed February 11, 2021(Statute 21A-382)
  8. Maine Legislature, "Constitution of the State of Maine," accessed February 11, 2021(Article IV, Section 5)
  9. Maine Legislature, "Maine Revised Statutes," accessed February 11, 2021(Statute 21A-361)
  10. 10.010.1Bangor Daily News, "Thousands of Mainers to shift to new congressional districts," September 29, 2021
  11. Maine Wire, "Maine Legislature accepts new redistricting plans, approves legal action on federal lobster rules," September 29, 2021
  12. 12.012.112.212.312.4All About Redistricting, "Maine," accessed April 30, 2015
  13. Politics1.com, "Maine," archived December 31, 2015
  14. Maine Secretary of State, "2016 Election Results," accessed December 20, 2016
  15. 15.015.1Maine Secretary of State, "List of Candidates who have filed for the June 14, 2016 Primary Election," accessed March 20, 2016
  16. 16.016.1Maine Secretary of State, "Tabulations for Primary Elections held on June 14, 2016," accessed August 11, 2016
  17. Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "List of Primary Candidates," accessed May 8, 2014
  18. Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "List of Non-Party Candidates," accessed June 2, 2014
  19. Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "Primary Election - June 10, 2014," accessed December 5, 2014
  20. Bureau of Corporations, Elections & Commissions, "General Election - November 4, 2014," accessed December 5, 2014
  21. "Maine Secretary of State - Official primary results," accessed October 17, 2013
  22. "Maine Secretary of State - Official general election results," accessed October 17, 2013


Current members of theMaine State Senate
Leadership
Senate President:Matthea Daughtry
Majority Leader:Teresa Pierce
Minority Leader:Harold Stewart
Senators
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
District 18
District 19
District 20
District 21
District 22
District 23
District 24
District 25
District 26
District 27
District 28
District 29
District 30
District 31
District 32
District 33
District 34
District 35
Democratic Party (20)
Republican Party (14)
Independent (1)


Flag of Maine
v  e
State ofMaine
Augusta (capital)
Elections

What's on my ballot? |Elections in 2026 |How to vote |How to run for office |Ballot measures

Government

Who represents me? |U.S. President |U.S. Congress |Federal courts |State executives |State legislature |State and local courts |Counties |Cities |School districts |Public policy