Sanford lawmaker accused of domestic violence linked to opponent in re-election bid

A Sanford lawmaker hoping to keep his seat in the state House after being accused of assaulting his wife has ties to his Democratic opponent.

Lucas Lanigan, Maine State Representative York County Jail via AP

Rep. Lucas Lanigan, R-Sanford, was charged with aggravated assault last month and continued his campaign against Democrat Patricia Kidder to represent parts of Shapleigh, Newfield, Sanford and Springvale in House District 141.

Kidder appeared to have won the seat until the city of Sanford reported a “human error” with the election results and released an updated count. The miscount had given Kidder a significant lead.

While Kidder still defeated Lanigan in Sanford’s new count — 1,217 to 987 votes — the two are now tied in the district-wide vote with 2,476 each due to existing vote counts in Shapleigh and Newfield combined with uniformed service ballots and foreign voters.

Official results from municipalities were announced to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday, said spokesperson Emily Cook. If these results confirm the race is tied, a candidate can request a recount, she said.

If that recount shows true equality, Maine law requires the governor to call a special election.

Cook said there have been few recent elections that ended in a tie.

A 2021 Portland City Council race is believed to be the nation’s first election to result in a tie. City rules require the winner to be determined “by drawing lots” – an old method of random selection, like drawing pieces of paper. After the drawing selected Brandon Mazer as the winner, candidate Roberto Rodriguez requested a recount, which later declared him the true victor.

And in 2008, early election results showed a tie between two Yarmouth candidates for a Democratic House seat. The recount results were challenged in the Maine Supreme Court, which decided the winner after analyzing three disputed ballots.

LANIGAN’S ARREST

Lanigan, 45, was first elected in 2022. Several Democratic leaders called for his resignation and withdrawal from the election after the alleged attack.

He is accused of attacking his wife last month after she found him with another woman in a Springvale Safe Storage unit, court documents show.

According to the arrest warrant, he grabbed his wife’s neck and choked her for about 20 seconds before she could leave and call her friends for help.

Sanford police were looking for him all weekend until he turned himself in at the York County Jail on October 28. He was charged with aggravated domestic violence assault, a class B misdemeanor that carried up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

His wife, Catalina Lanigan, argued last week in his first appearance in York County Superior Court for a judge to drop the charges. She said he never tried to strangle her. But prosecutors say victims regularly recant their accusations and are still pursuing charges against him.

HOW CAN YOU GET HELP

IF YOU or if someone you know has experienced domestic violence, please call the Statewide Domestic Abuse Helpline at 1-866-834-4357.

FOR HELP call or text during a mental health crisis 888-568-1112. To call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, call 988 or chat online at 988lifeline.org.

TO LEARN For more information about domestic violence prevention and response in Maine, visit the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence website.

FOR OTHER support or referrals, call the NAMI Maine Helpline at 800-464-5767 or email [email protected].

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