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As Republican Gov. Paul LePage begins his second term by pushing a bold tax reform plan, some Maine Democrats are still scratching their heads about what went wrong in the November election.

The last time Maine voters elected a Democrat to a statewide office was in 2006. They won't have another opportunity until the 2018 gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races.

However, the immediate focus is on 2016 when Democrats will try to regain Maine's 2nd Congressional District and the state Senate, which they lost in November.

"I think Democrats didn't have -- from the national effort all the way down -- didn't have the enthusiasm, didn't have the fire in the belly to get out and vote like they did two years ago for President Obama," former Democratic Gov. John Baldacci said.

Baldacci was the last Democrat to be elected to statewide office when he won re-election in 2006 to the Blaine House.

Leading up to November's election, Democrats had been touting their ground game and get-out-the-vote efforts.

"But you want the candidate out there, walking up and down the streets of Bangor, Lewiston, you know? You want them out there knocking on doors and talking to people," said Baldacci.

President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton all came to Maine to stump for Democrats, including gubernatorial candidate Mike Michaud.

Baldacci said the candidates did not do enough to separate themselves from the establishment.

"The issues in Maine are always more important than what the political issues are in Washington," he said.

Read more from the original source:
Maine Democrats regroup after election losses