AUGUSTA — Today the Human Rights Campaign PAC (HRC PAC) announced its endorsement of Maine Gov. Janet Mills for reelection. HRC PAC is committed to engaging our volunteers, members and supporters to mobilize the 430,000 Equality Voters in Maine in support of Mills and other pro-equality candidates up and down the ballot.

Human Rights Campaign Interim President Joni Madison released the following statement:

“The election of Gov. Janet Mills in 2018 was a breath of fresh air for Maine, and her reelection in 2022 is essential to protect the progress made under her watch so far and to guarantee further advances for LGBTQ+ equality. After the previous administration made a point of going against the will of the majority of Mainers and the legislature by standing as an obstacle to important measures, such as banning the dangerous practice of so-called “conversion therapy,” Gov. Mills quickly went to work addressing those wrongs. Under her guidance, the state has been able to make up for lost time and enact a number of pro-LGBTQ+ reforms that are widely popular and were desperately needed. Gov. Mills has been an outstanding ally for the LGBTQ+ community in Maine and an exceptional leader for all, and the Human Rights Campaign is proud to endorse her reelection.”

Gov. Mills released the following statement:

“I am proud to earn the support of the Human Rights Campaign, an organization that is on the forefront of fighting for LGBTQ+ equality. Throughout my career, I have worked to ensure that Maine is a welcoming, inclusive, and safe place for all people to live, and, as governor, I am proud of the progress we have made to secure full equality under the law for LGBTQ+ people. It's a fight that I pledge to continue during my second term."

In just a single term so far, the leadership of Gov. Mills has been transformational for Maine’s LGBTQ+ community. She signed into a law a ban on so-called “conversion therapy,” the debunked and discredited practice that aims – ineffectively and dangerously – to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. She has also worked with lawmakers to pass into law legislation that makes it easier for Maine residents to amend their birth certificates, expanded insurance coverage for HIV prevention medication, and prohibited exclusions for transgender people in health insurance plans.

An Opponent With An Anti-Equality Record

Former Maine Gov. Paul LePage, who is on the ballot again this year, has a dismal track record when it comes to his LGBTQ+ policies and public statements. In his last year in office, he vetoed a ban on so-called “conversion therapy” – a practice that aims to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity – despite the fact that “conversion therapy” has been denounced by every major health care and mental health organization as ineffective and cruel. He endorsed a lawsuit that sought to allow employers to fire workers on the basis of their LGBTQ+ identity, arguing that it was about “separation of powers.” He opposed an Obama administration effort that encouraged schools to allow transgender students to use the bathroom that conforms with their gender identity. And he has spoken frequently against abortion access, speaking publicly at anti-abortion rallies.

HRC’s Commitment to Maine

Equality Voters, including the 430,000 in Maine, are a voting bloc of demographically and geographically diverse Americans who are united by the advancement of LGBTQ+ equality. Equality Voters are younger, more racially diverse, and more female than the general electorate, they recognize and trust the HRC brand, and they are more likely to identify with issue-specific organizations than candidates or political parties.

Across the country, HRC PAC works every day to elect pro-equality leaders who support policies that will support the rights and lives of LGBTQ+ people. During the 2020 election cycle, HRC staff on the ground recruited 5,800 individual volunteers nationwide who completed 28,500 hours of voter contact in more than 2,650 volunteer events. HRC engaged in robust digital and online GOTV efforts, including sending over 2.7 million person-to-person text messages, a massive increase from 2018 when approximately 500,000 texts were sent. HRC sent over 2.5 million mail pieces, had over 930,000 phone conversations with voters, and engaged more than 200,000 voters through HRC’s voter dashboard at hrc.org/vote.