DJ Sjostrom of Auburn Public Works sets up voting booths Monday at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine in Auburn. It is one of three locations in the city where residents will vote Tuesday. City Clerk Sue Clements-Dallaire said she is expecting a high turnout on Election Day. She said 3,766 people requested an absentee ballot, compared to 3,027 who voted absentee in 2018, the last gubernatorial election. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

LEWISTON — Heading into Election Day on Tuesday, Republicans and Democrats held campaign events in Lewiston to rally the faithful and perhaps sway undecided voters.

Republicans said they are convinced voters are ready for change to fight inflation and crime.

Democrats said Mainers will not buy the GOP’s ideas of change, which they described as a return to failed policies of the past.

Gov. Janet Mills poses for a photo Monday with supporters Cara Courchesne and her daughter, Elena Ronzio, 6, after a campaign rally at Dufresne Plaza in Lewiston. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

Many of them, though, agree with Republican Lewiston City Councilor Lee Clement, who Monday called this year’s election “maybe the most important of our lives.”

For Clement, it is a crucial test of whether the country is going to secure its border, clamp down on crime and stop “the indoctrination of our children” at public schools.

For Democrats, it is about protecting Social Security and access to health care, dealing with climate change and protecting abortion rights.

Governor Janet Mills addresses a crowd Monday during a campaign rally at Dufresne Plaza in Lewiston. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

Voters will decide three-way races for governor and Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, along with state legislative contests and many other matchups for offices at the county and municipal levels.

Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, and former U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin, a Republican, led campaign events Monday in Lewiston to push last-minute messages to the shrinking number of crucially important undecided voters.

Poliquin appeared with a few local GOP officials to talk about crime, while Mills led a rally that brought about 80 party loyalists to Dufresne Plaza on Lisbon Street.

Drew Gattine, the state Democratic Party chairman, told a rally Monday in Lewiston that Paul LePage offers “disastrous ideas and unhinged temperament,” and, insisted, “We’ll send (him) back to Florida.”

Mills, who is seeking a second term, said at a rally Monday evening in Lewiston: “We can’t go back. Not now. Not ever.”

Poliquin’s appearance Monday afternoon beside the Lewiston Police Department focused on his claims that Lewiston and the nation are experiencing a surge in crime.

Former U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin holds a bag labeled “5 DEADLY LBS” Monday during his campaign appearance in Lewiston. He said if it was fentanyl instead of flour, it could kill everyone in Maine. Steve Collins/ Sun Journal

At one point, the former congressman held up a bag labeled “5 DEADLY LBS” and insisted that if it were fentanyl, it could kill “every man, woman and child in Maine.”

Fortunately, it was just flour.

When they get their ballots Tuesday, Mainers will see many familiar names.

Governor Janet Mills addresses a crowd Monday during a campaign rally at Dufresne Plaza in Lewiston. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal

All three of the 2nd District congressional candidates were on the ballot in 2018, when U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat, unseated Poliquin, who had served two terms.

Between them, the two major party contenders for governor — Mills and challenger LePage — have held the state’s top office since 2010.

The last time LePage and Poliquin were both on the ballot, in 2014, LePage won a second term as governor and Poliquin captured an open congressional seat in Maine’s 2nd District.

A lot has changed over the past eight years.

The two Republicans have been out of office since 2018, when LePage could not run again because of term limits and voters ousted Poliquin in the nation’s first federal ranked-choice election.

Bruce Poliquin talks with a passerby Monday following a press event at the Lewiston Police Station. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

After leaving office, LePage quickly moved to Florida for sunshine and lower taxes — not exactly a rare move for retirees — and Poliquin stayed to care for his ailing parents.

Both men are now seeking a return to power.

Poliquin said they are stepping back from retirement because both are businessmen who know what is needed to get the economy turned around.

Democrats are not impressed.

Mills said the state has prospered under Democratic leadership, which has boosted teacher pay, provided more people with health insurance, offered free community college to tens of thousands of Mainers and more.

Two independents are also on the ballot for top offices.

In the governor’s race, Sam Hunkler, a retired doctor, is taking on Mills and LePage. Polls show him getting no more than a few percent of the overall vote.

In the 2nd District congressional contest, Tiffany Bond, a Portland lawyer, is running a strong social media campaign that she hopes will pick her among the top two finishers in the ranked-choice race, opening the door to a possible upset. Polls, though, show her getting about 8% of the vote, with most of her supporters picking Golden second.

There are also many competitive state and local matchups.

The hot state legislative races include ones for open state Senate seats in Lewiston and Auburn.

In Lewiston, Democrat Peggy Rotundo is facing Republican Ricky LaChapelle while in Auburn, Republican Eric Brakey and Democrat Bettyann Sheats are competing. Rotundo, Brakey and Sheats have served previously in the Legislature. LaChappelle is a city councilor in Lewiston.

Polls are open Tuesday until 8 p.m. Every Maine resident who is a U.S. citizen and 18 or older is eligible to vote.

Bill LaMontagne, left, and DJ Sjostrom of Auburn Public Works set up voting booths Monday at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine in Auburn. The Boys & Girls Club is one of three locations where Auburn residents will vote on Tuesday. City Clerk Sue Clements-Dallaire said she is expecting a high turnout on Election day, and said 3,766 people have already requested an absentee ballot. She had 3,027 vote absentee in 2018, the last gubernatorial election. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal