(NEWS CENTER Maine) — Here is what you need to know as you start your day.
1. JANET MILLS RETURNS TO HOMETOWN AS GOVERNOR-ELECT
People in Governor-elect's Janet Mills hometown of Farmington gathered for a celebration of her win. Nearly 200 people packed the Homestead Kitchen Bar and Bakery as Mills thanked her supporters while pointing out that she won by more than 50 percent of the vote. Before the celebration, she talked with reporters about her intention to fund Medicaid expansion and tackle the opioid crisis.
2. CD2 TO BE DECIDED BY RANKED CHOICE VOTING
Maine's second district congressional race between Republican representative Bruce Poliquin and Democrat Jared Golden will be decided by ranked-choice. It's clear now that neither of them will reach a 50-percent majority on the first count. Starting this morning, all ballots in the second District will be collected and brought to Augusta for a ranked choice count. In that process, the last place finisher's second choice will be counted and reallocated. If that doesn't result in a 50 percent majority for someone, the ballots for the candidate who finished third will also be reallocated. Secretary of State Matt Dunlap says he doesn't want to promise a timeline, but he estimates it could be at least a week.
3. HUMAN REMAINS FOUND IN BLUE HILL
A hunter in Blue Hill discovered human remains near Grindleville Road. While the medical examiner still has yet to identify the remains, police have been looking for 37-year-old Jessica Grindle in that same area since she went missing in August.
4. ATTORNEY GENERAL JEFF SESSIONS DEPARTS WHITE HOUSE
President Trump fired Attorney General Jeff Sessions just a day after the midterm elections. The forced resignation capped months of the president's trashing the Alabama Republican for recusing himself from the Justice Department's investigation of Russian election meddling. Trump has named Matthew Whitaker, Sessions' chief of staff and an outspoken critic of the Russia investigation, as acting AG, thus putting him in charge of the probe.
5. WHITE HOUSE REMOVES PRESS PASS FOR CNN'S JIM ACOSTA
CNN White House correspondent Jim Acosta is now banned from the White House after a testy exchange with President Trump during a press conference yesterday. The White House says Acosta's pass was removed as a result of his attempt to keep control of the microphone during the conference, and in doing so he is accused of "putting his hands" on the White House intern who was trying to get the microphone. CNN released a statement saying the incident as described by the White House is false and that it "never happened."
