Rock star Jon Fishman has spent most of his life pursuing musical interests, but on Sunday in Portland he devoted his time to an entirely different cause: promoting what he believes are the virtues of ranked-choice voting.
Fishman, a drummer, lyricist and vocalist for the band Phish, showed up at the Bayside Bowl, where he helped gather signatures to resurrect ranked-choice voting in Maine.
After doing that and mingling with his fans, Fishman took to the stage at the bowling alley and performed with soul-jam band Hambone, Bayside Bowl’s house band. During his performance, fans took photos of the celebrity.“I don’t really have too many political ambitions beyond serving my local community,” Fishman, who lives in Lincolnville and is on the town’s Board of Selectmen, said during a break. “But as a citizen, I feel a great deal of frustration. The people voted for ranked-choice voting.”
“It’s shocking to me that our Republican governor and our legislators can go against the will of the people. It’s infuriating,” he added. In November 2016, Maine voters overwhelmingly voted to implement ranked-choice voting. But in October 2017 the Legislature voted to delay the law until December 2021 and to repeal it if the Maine Constitution isn’t amended to deal with legal concerns raised by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.ADVERTISING