Maine voters raised the minimum wage. Now their governor wants to block the raise.

By Laura Clawson
Tuesday Nov 29, 2016 · 11:12 AM EST

The 2016 ballot measure raising Maine’s minimum wage to $12 by 2020 got far more votes than Gov. Paul LePage did in 2014—417,132 vs. 294,533. But according to LePage, Maine voters just didn’t know what they were doing when they passed the minimum wage increase, and they need him to protect them from their own actions by blocking it.

In a letter sent to incoming lawmakers and released publicly yesterday, Maine Governor Paul LePage railed against the recently-passed minimum wage increase referendum and said he would back legislation to halt the raises.

Falsely claiming that the measure will harm Maine’s elderly, LePage wrote that “Mainers did not understand the specifics of the referendum they approved” when voting in favor of Question 4.

LePage says he intends to delay the implementation of the minimum wage increases, cancel future raises based on the cost of living and strip away base wage increases for workers like restaurant servers who also receive tips.

The good news is, Democrats control the Maine state House, so there will be a barrier to LePage overturning the will of his state’s voters.

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http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/11/29/1605163/-Maine-voters-raised-the-minimum-wage-Now-their-governor-wants-to-block-the-raise