Help us achieve our mission with a tax deductible donation today!
|
Maine Democracy ProjectOur mission is to empower a new generation of voters, advocates, and leaders through civics education, voter registration, and electoral engagement efforts.
We are a non-partisan, nonprofit organization committed to increasing political participation and government involvement among Maine students and youth. |
President & Founder - Sen. Justin Chenette
Justin Chenette is the founder of the Maine Democracy Project.
Justin has spent nearly a decade in public office. He is a 4-term Maine lawmaker having served two terms in the Senate and two terms in the House of Representatives. Justin is also the author of a children’s book and coloring book entitled The Great Whoopie Pie Debate, aimed at educating students about how their own government works.
Justin launched the Maine Democracy Project in 2020 to inspire a new generation of voters, advocates, and leaders through civics education, voter registration, and electoral engagement efforts.
In 2012, Justin made history by becoming the nation’s youngest openly gay legislator and Maine's youngest lawmaker at age 21. He was sworn into office just a week before graduating from college. Justin has been recognized nationally by The Advocate magazine, listing him on their list of the 40 Under 40 most accomplished leaders throughout the country.
In the Legislature, he chaired the bipartisan Government Oversight Committee and served on a number of committees including Senate Ethics, co-chaired the Youth Caucus, and founded the Democracy Reform Caucus. He was also appointed to the National Conference of State Legislature's Redistricting & Elections Committee. He passed legislation that reformed campaign finance standards to reduce money in politics, strengthened ethics rules to limit lobbyist influence, expanded Ranked Choice Voting to the Presidential race, and put Maine on a path to implement automatic voter registration.
Justin’s political career began at age 17 when Governor John Baldacci appointed him to serve on the Maine State Board of Education, making history as its first student board member. There he advocated for voter registration drives and civics education in the classroom.
While in college, he was chosen to be a delegate to the 2012 Democratic National Convention and was a congressional intern for Republican U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe. He re-established the statewide organization, Maine Young Democrats, serving as its president for two years and is a past state director of the Young Elected Officials Network.
Two sitting U.S. Presidents have honored his community work as the recipient of the gold level Volunteer Service Award; in 2008, by President Bush, and in 2016, by President Obama.
After attending Saco public schools, he graduated high school from Thornton Academy while taking a full semester of college courses at the University of Southern Maine. Justin graduated from Northern Vermont University-Lyndon with a B.S. in Broadcast News, where he was named the Outstanding Young Alumni in 2019. Justin also earned an Executive Certificate in Public Leadership from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government after receiving a full ride fellowship. He is currently pursuing a post-baccalaureate degree in Public Administration from the University of Maine at Augusta.
Learn more at www.JustinChenette.com.
Justin has spent nearly a decade in public office. He is a 4-term Maine lawmaker having served two terms in the Senate and two terms in the House of Representatives. Justin is also the author of a children’s book and coloring book entitled The Great Whoopie Pie Debate, aimed at educating students about how their own government works.
Justin launched the Maine Democracy Project in 2020 to inspire a new generation of voters, advocates, and leaders through civics education, voter registration, and electoral engagement efforts.
In 2012, Justin made history by becoming the nation’s youngest openly gay legislator and Maine's youngest lawmaker at age 21. He was sworn into office just a week before graduating from college. Justin has been recognized nationally by The Advocate magazine, listing him on their list of the 40 Under 40 most accomplished leaders throughout the country.
In the Legislature, he chaired the bipartisan Government Oversight Committee and served on a number of committees including Senate Ethics, co-chaired the Youth Caucus, and founded the Democracy Reform Caucus. He was also appointed to the National Conference of State Legislature's Redistricting & Elections Committee. He passed legislation that reformed campaign finance standards to reduce money in politics, strengthened ethics rules to limit lobbyist influence, expanded Ranked Choice Voting to the Presidential race, and put Maine on a path to implement automatic voter registration.
Justin’s political career began at age 17 when Governor John Baldacci appointed him to serve on the Maine State Board of Education, making history as its first student board member. There he advocated for voter registration drives and civics education in the classroom.
While in college, he was chosen to be a delegate to the 2012 Democratic National Convention and was a congressional intern for Republican U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe. He re-established the statewide organization, Maine Young Democrats, serving as its president for two years and is a past state director of the Young Elected Officials Network.
Two sitting U.S. Presidents have honored his community work as the recipient of the gold level Volunteer Service Award; in 2008, by President Bush, and in 2016, by President Obama.
After attending Saco public schools, he graduated high school from Thornton Academy while taking a full semester of college courses at the University of Southern Maine. Justin graduated from Northern Vermont University-Lyndon with a B.S. in Broadcast News, where he was named the Outstanding Young Alumni in 2019. Justin also earned an Executive Certificate in Public Leadership from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government after receiving a full ride fellowship. He is currently pursuing a post-baccalaureate degree in Public Administration from the University of Maine at Augusta.
Learn more at www.JustinChenette.com.
