Maine's main women: the success of the state's two top leaders may have more to do with voters' independent streak than it does with gender politics.

• Author: Boulard, Garry
• Position: Hannah Pingree

When Hannah Pingree was sworn in as the new speaker of the Maine House of Representatives last December, she regarded it as a natural progression in a state that prides itself on its gender-neutral politics.

"This is a place where women have been politically embraced for a long time," says Pingree, 32, reflecting on the fact that she and Senate President Elizabeth "Libby" Mitchell had made history in Maine by being the first two women to lead their chambers simultaneously.

She pointed to the career of the legendary Margaret Chase Smith of Maine, who served in the U.S. House for nine years before winning election to the U.S. Senate where she was the only woman in that chamber for nearly a quarter of a century.

"Maine has for years elected women to the Legislature," says Pingree. "What is different is that we are now also open to having

Garry Boulard is a free-lance writer in Albuquerque, N.M., and a frequent contributor to State Legislatures. women in leadership in the Legislature. The faith that people here have in their women leaders has actually increased."

Maine is not No. 1 in elected women. With only 29 percent of elective offices occupied by women, it ranks 14th. That includes, however, both U.S. senators and one of its two members of Congress--Chellie Pingree, the mother of Speaker Pingree and former Maine Senate majority leader. Women also make up eight of the 35-member Senate and 46 of the 151-member House.

Some observers think the success of women in leadership roles owes a lot to how people in Maine look at politics.

"Maine is a fiercely egalitarian state," says Mark Brewer, a professor of political science at the University of Maine. "People just go their own way here, and as a result, they are much more likely to think about what a woman candidate stands for than the fact that she is a woman, which may not always be the case in other parts of the country."

HISTORY-MAKING PAIR

Maine voters in November returned Pingree to the House and Mitchell to the Senate. Just weeks after that election, Pingree was named speaker and Mitchell, a former House speaker, was named Senate president. They won their posts by unanimous votes.

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Mitchell, 69, has described her leadership style as one of not talking to people but with them. "No political party or single elected official has a monopoly on good ideas," she said when elected to lead the Senate. She's won praise from her colleagues for trying to understand the...