Special election candidates file for Maine House seat


The candidate filing deadline passed on January 18 for the special election in District 124 of the Maine House of Representatives. Joseph Perry (D) and Thomas White (R) are facing off in the general election on March 12.
 
The District 124 seat became vacant after Aaron Frey (D) was elected by the Maine State Legislature to succeed Janet Mills (D) as state attorney general. Frey had represented the district since 2012. He was last re-elected in 2018 with 63 percent of the vote.
 
The Maine House of Representatives currently has 88 Democrats, 57 Republicans, five independents, and one vacancy. Maine has a Democratic trifecta. A state government trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and both state legislative chambers.
 
In 2019, 35 state legislative special elections have been scheduled or held in 14 states. Between 2011 and 2018, an average of 77 special elections took place each year.