Representative Kyle Bailey

10/14/2024

On this Indigenous Peoples’ Day, it’s important for us to acknowledge that the right to vote has been a historic–and ongoing–challenge for Native Americans across the United States.

Native Americans were not guaranteed the right to vote until passage of the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924–four years after women secured the right to vote and 54 years after passage of the 15th Amendment.

Until 1958, Utah and North Dakota prevented Native Americans who lived on reservations from voting. Until 1970, Arizona imposed a literacy test that disproportionately disenfranchised Native Americans.

In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated the pre-clearance formula in Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (Shelby County v. Holder), thus removing a powerful tool to ensure equal access for Native Americans to the ballot in Alaska, Arizona, and in two jurisdictions in South Dakota.

According to the Native American Voting Rights Coalition, Native Americans have the lowest voter participation rates of any racial or ethnic group in the United States today. The contributing issues include:

- Lack of trust in government
- Lack of voter registration information
- Long travel distances to voter registration offices or to polling stations
- Low levels of Internet access and digital disparity
- Outright hostility and intimidation of Native Americans in some places

Additional barriers include:
- Lack of English language proficiency
- Socioeconomic disparities
- Lack of transportation
- Lack of a residential address, and homelessness
- Lack of access to mail

In states with voter ID laws, one or more of these barriers can prohibit some Native Americans from exercising their right to vote.

For those of us who are committed to strengthening democracy and making our union more perfect, there is much work to be done to remedy disparities, oppose suppression efforts, and support reforms like The Committee for Ranked Choice Voting, Protect Maine Elections, Maine Citizens to End Super PACs, and Maine Citizens for Clean Elections to empower and give more voice to voters and communities that have been historically underrepresented. On this day, let us renew our pledge to make Maine and America a more perfect union–especially for those whose ancestors called these lands “home” long before many of ours arrived.

Sources:

American Bar Association. “How the Native American Vote Continues to be Suppressed.” Link.

National Congress of American Indians. Archives. Link.

National League of Cities. “Political Participation Among Indigenous People”. Link.

02/24/2022

Hi**er did not stop at Czechoslovakia. Putin will not stop at Ukraine.

10/15/2021

Due to recent changes in my personal financial situation and career demands, I am unable to continue representing you in the Maine House of Representatives. I have submitted my resignation to Speaker Fecteau effective today, Friday, October 15, 2021.

While I regret that I must resign my term before its natural expiration, I am excited to share with you that Jim Boyle has stepped forward to represent our district in the Maine House. As you know, Jim represented us previously in the State Senate. He is a smart, compassionate and experienced business owner and environmental leader with strong relationships in Augusta.

A special election will be called by the Governor for sometime in December to fill this seat. To find out how you can support Jim, please call him at 756-2928 or email him at [email protected].

The past two years have been difficult for all of us. However, we have demonstrated patience, persistence, and the ability to overcome adversity.

Serving the citizens of Gorham and Scarborough in the Maine House of Representatives during this challenging period has been the privilege of a lifetime. I am proud to have worked with Speaker Fecteau to adopt ongoing voter registration; with Secretary Bellows to increase opportunities for voter participation; and, with colleagues and constituents of all political stripes to create a loan repayment program for health care workers, support sustainable economic development projects, promote youth perspectives in workforce development, study incentives for residential fire sprinkler systems, and raise the importance of planning for Maine’s future.

Thank you for the opportunity to represent you. I look forward to serving the public in my ongoing role as an advocate for reforming elections and strengthening democracy for future generations. I wish you and your loved ones health and happiness.

Kyle Bailey

Rep. Kyle Bailey is mostly known in state politics for running the 2016 referendum campaign that enshrined Maine’s first-in-the-nation ranked-choice voting system.

09/15/2021

American democracy is under attack from autocrats abroad and fascists here. This threat is greater than any other. Protecting and strengthening our democracy is my top priority.

Most Americans feel democracy is under attack in this country (56%), according to a new CNN Poll conducted by SSRS, as 51% say it is likely that elected officials in the US will successfully overturn the results of a future election because their party did not win.

09/02/2021

Don’t become extinct. 🦕 Get the vaccine. 💉

08/21/2021

Today, I had a citizen ask if I am for or against mandatory vaccinations for health care workers. This was my reply:

“Strongly for. If they can get it and they won’t, they have cause to be fired and my sympathy well is a little dry for them.”

08/18/2021

I was proud to sign this letter condemning anti-semitism. Given the rise of fascism in America with Trump and the takeover of the GOP by anti-democratic forces, it is imperative that patriotic Americans stand up and speak out against hate and for our American ideals of justice and equality. 🇺🇸

A group of Maine lawmakers are condemning the participation of a state Representative in an event hosted by a man who has made several anti-Semitic claims.

08/12/2021

It’s not rocket science.

As schools start classes across the United States, public health experts warn that the politics around masks could hinder the nation's fight against Covid-19.

08/10/2021

20 years later and we still haven’t solved the alarming issue of income inequality. Hard working Americans have struggled to survive during the past two decades. They have faced significant setbacks and losses due to the Great Recession, the COVID-19 pandemic and an economy with rules that have been written to benefit the powerful and well-connected at their expense. Every 17 hours a millionaire becomes a billionaires. The gap between the haves and the have nots continues to grow. History tells us that crony capitalism and excessive inequality undermines and eventually upends both capitalism and democracy.

08/07/2021

COVID can kill you. Don’t be stupid. Don’t believe quacks. Get vaccinated.

Texas Republican official H. Scott Apley, a raging critic of masks and the vaccine, died in the hospital from coronavirus. CNN's Tom Foreman reports.

08/03/2021

This is good public policy.

New York City will require proof of vaccination to enter all restaurants, fitness centers and indoor entertainment venues, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday.

07/13/2021

I urge Our Power Maine to gather the signatures necessary to place this question on the November 2022 ballot. Maine voters need to weigh in on this major policy question. 🗳⚡️

Rep. Seth Berry Nicole Grohoski, State Representative

The governor described the performance of Maine's electric utilities as "abysmal" but said formation of a consumer-owned utility required more deliberation and public involvement.