Supreme Court Orders Maine Legislator Censured for Social Media Post Must Get Voting Rights Back
A Maine legislator stripped of her voting rights after a controversial social media post must be allowed to vote and speak again, following a Supreme Court decision on Monday. The legislator, Rep. Laurel Libby (R–Auburn), had filed an application for an emergency injunction last month.
In February, Libby came under fire for a post on Facebook and X criticizing the state’s decision to allow a transgender girl, who had previously competed as a boy, to participate in a high school girls’ track championship. The student—whose face was shown in the post while other female athletes’ faces were blurred—had won the girls’ pole vault event.Â
Soon after, Libby was censured by the Maine Legislature. When Libby refused to apologize for the post, the speaker of the Maine House, Ryan Fecteau (D–Biddeford), found her in violation of a House rule that strips voting and speaking rights to any member who “is guilty of a breach of any of the rules and orders of the House…until the member has made satisfaction.”Â
For months, Libby had not been allowed to speak, and her votes were not counted.
Article from Reason.com
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