Flags in the Pine Tree State could be getting an old-fashioned makeover.
On Monday, Maine Secretary of State Shena Bellows announced that Adam Lemire of Gardiner is the winner of the Maine State Flag Redesign Contest, according to a press release.
Lemire said he was “honored and excited” to have his design chosen as the model for the potential new state flag, which features Maine’s state tree, the Eastern White Pine.
“The design is based on those I observed in Capital Park and Viles Arboretum while on walks with my three-year old son,” Lemire said. “The final design is primarily based on an Eastern White Pine in Governor’s Grove at Viles Arboretum.”
Lemire said the tree on his flag has 16 branches because there are 16 counties in Maine.
The rules and design brief for the contest adhered to a law passed last year: An Act to Restore the Former State of Maine Flag. If voters support the idea of Maine returning to a flag resembling the one it flew from 1901 to 1908, the law requires the flag be:
“Buff, charged with the emblem of the State, a pine tree proper, in the center, and the North Star, a mullet of 5 points, in blue in the upper corner; the star to be equidistant from the hoist and the upper border of the flag, the distance from the 2 borders to the center of the star being equal to about 1/4 of the hoist, this distance and the size of the star being proportionate to the size of the flag.”
The winning design was one of more than 400 submissions made to the contest, with contenders coming from 42 different states and even from abroad. The submissions were then narrowed down to ten finalists.
Senator Tim Nangle, Chair of the State and Local Government Committee was part of the group who helped Secretary Bellows choose the flag. He said he was “honored to be part of this process.”
“Our flag is something every Mainer should be proud of and I look forward to seeing what Mainers across our state choose.” Nangle said.
The flag question will be Question 5 on Maine voters’ state ballot this fall, “Do you favor making the former state flag, replaced as the official flag of the State in 1909 and commonly known as the Pine Tree Flag, the official flag of the State?” No design will be pictured on the ballot itself.
Now that the contest is through, Lemire’s winning design has a chance to become official. Now it remains to be seen how voters will decide on Question 5.
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