AUGUSTA, Maine — In November, Maine voters will be asked if they want to replace the current state flag with the state's original 1901 flag—commonly referred to as "the pine tree flag."
Ahead of that, every Mainer will be given the chance to design the specific flag that will be voted on.
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows kicked off a five-week design competition on Friday. When the Legislature voted in 2023 to send the flag debate to the voters, they tasked Bellows with choosing the one design that would go up against the current blue flag with the state seal on it, which has been in use since 1909 and resembles multiple other state flags formed around that time. Instead of choosing a design herself, Bellows decided to launch a competition and lean on a selection panel.
Submissions will be accepted online until 5 p.m. July 19. The flag background must be "buff," meaning the traditional off-white of the original 1901 flag. It must also have a "pine tree proper" in the center and a blue five-pointed star in a corner. That does limit things, but artists can still get creative.
"Interpretations of the state flag varied and have always varied," Bellows said at a Friday press conference. "In the earliest days, flags were painted by hand and one flag maker’s interpretation might vary significantly from another's."
The competition excited state archivist Kate McBrien.
"As a historian, I love the fact that we're looking at symbols and flags and, as a state, trying to talk about, what does this mean to us? How does this reflect how we see ourselves; how we see our state?" she posed during an interview in the State House Hall of Flags.
Bellows said she’ll announce the winner sometime in August, allowing time for voters to see what they’re deciding on before ballots are distributed.
Submissions must be original, and the winning creator must sign ownership rights over to the state. While they cannot add text to the flag itself, designers were encouraged to include explanations as to why they chose certain elements of their piece.