U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren

With 17 days to go before the November elections, Democratic Party leaders, supporters, and candidates took to the streets across Maine on Saturday as part of a nationwide mobilization to get out the vote. 

Underscoring what she sees as the stakes of the midterms, particularly Maine’s Senate race, Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts told an estimated crowd of 1000 people who rallied in Portland’s Deering Oaks Park that a vote for a Republican is essentially a vote for President Donald Trump’s agenda.

“Two years of Donald Trump and the Republican majority in the House and the Senate have never had the backbone to say no to anything,” she said. “Not an illegal war, not illegal tariffs, not tax cuts for billionaires, not taking away healthcare for millions of people, not to the biggest grifter in the history of the United States.”

Without naming U.S. Sen. Susan Collins but in an apparent reference to the longtime Republican senator’s approach to the Trump administration, Warren continued, “So here’s the deal, the time for polite requests for Donald Trump is over. No Kings means that we stand up, we show pride, we show backbone, we go to the polls, we go for a fighter, we vote for Troy Jackson.”

Jackson, Collins’ Democratic challenger, and Democratic gubernatorial nominee Hannah Pingree also addressed the Portland crowd. 

Pingree, who previously served as speaker of the Maine House of Representatives, encouraged those assembled to spend the next two weeks volunteering, talking to friends, and encouraging others to vote on Nov. 3. 

“Democracy does not protect itself, it takes people,” she said, “don’t leave it to chance.”

Though dubbed as a Defeat Collins rally, the Portland protest was among roughly 30 events held across the state Saturday, which was planned specifically to encourage people to vote early.

In several locations, turnout was lower than previous No Kings Day rallies in June and October 2025, and March 2026. 

In Bath, event spokesperson Jessica Mahnke said the events were deliberately less focused on Trump. “It’s a different event. It’s not a protest — it has a different temperament than the usual protests,” Mahnke said.

Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King, who made an appearance in Bath, said the purpose of the mobilization is “to demonstrate that we’re a democracy and we want to stay that way.”

Pam Giannatsis, who was among the estimated 400 people waving signs and flags along the Sagadahoc Bridge, said she came “to show solidarity and support what democracy needs to be, for everyone.”

In Freeport, organizer Kathleen Meade handed out “thanks but I voted early signs” to people who said they already cast a ballot. Roughly 75 people lined the main drag outside the L.L. Bean flagship store, much less than the roughly 3,000 that Meade said showed up for the previous No Kings rallies. 

Early, in-person voting started in Maine on Oct. 5. Voters can request a ballot through the Maine Secretary of State’s website or cast a vote at their municipal clerk’s office. Check out Maine Morning Star’s voter guide for more information.

According to the Secretary of State’s Office, more than 178,000 ballots have been requested, as of Friday, with more than 101,000 returned and accepted. That’s already more than the more than 84,000 who voted early in the June primary election. In 2022, the last gubernatorial election, a total of 252,135 absentee ballots were issued.

Jim Neuger contributed reporting to this story.