Old habits die hard.
Maine Governor Paul LePage (R) is still claiming that this year’s election was rigged, casting doubt on the results in a hedge-y letter he sent to newly-elected lawmakers in his state without citing any evidence to back up his suspicions, The Washington Post reported Thursday.
In the letter, which State Sen.-elect Justin Chenette (D) shared on Twitter, LePage writes that he is going through with certifying the election results despite “strong concerns.”
“I am issuing this summons and signing this election certificate despite the fact that I maintain strong concerns regarding the integrity of Maine’s ballot and accuracy of Maine’s election results and I cannot attest to the accuracy of the tabulation certified by the Secretary of State,” the letter reads.
I call on Gov. LePage to provide evidence of his election integrity & accuracy issues. Your baseless rhetoric hurts democracy. #mepolitics pic.twitter.com/nml0axYyob
— Rep. Justin Chenette (@justinchenette) December 1, 2016
State Rep. Matt Moonen (D), who won his re-election bid, shared a copy of the same letter on his Facebook page with the caption: “This is so embarrassing. And nobody gives a shit what you can attest to.”
It doesn’t appear that any incoming Republican lawmakers shared a copy of the letter.
LePage had been stoking fears of rigged election just days before voting took place, including saying that he planned to investigate college students who cast ballots in his state to root out voter fraud.
