At the northeastern tip of the U.S., Maine (the "Pine Tree State") has the 9th-smallest population in the U.S. at 1,372,559 people—though it has shown a slight growth of 3.33% since 2010. Also, the 12th-smallest state in total area at 35,380 square miles (mi²), Maine has a population density of 45 people per square mile. This is well below the national density of 96 people/mi² as of 2023 and ranks as the least-densely populated state in New England.
Nearly half of Maine's population resides in and around Portland, with 69,071 residents in the city itself and more than 550,000 in its greater metropolitan area. Despite this urban concentration, Maine is considered the most rural state in the U.S. Its capital, Augusta, has 24,364 residents, and its smallest city, Little john Island, is home to barely 100 people. A coastal state, Maine also boasts the easternmost city in the United States, the appropriately named East port—which boasts roughly 1,276 residents and consists almost entirely of islands connected by causeways.
The U.S. Census Bureau ranks Maine as the whitest state in the U.S., with a population that is 94.4% Caucasian and the second-least-diverse state. Maine also has the highest median age of any state and one of the highest percentages of rural inhabitants.
Maine entered the Union in March 1820 as part of the Missouri Compromise. No state outside the original 13 colonies started with more electoral votes – it had nine in the 1820 election. By the mid-19th century, Maine had begun losing electoral votes and had four since the 1964 election. Primarily Republican from the Civil War (going "blue" only in 1912, 1964, and 1968) through the 1980s, Maine has voted Democratic in the last eight elections;. However, the 2016 race was relatively close by recent historical standards, with Hillary Clinton winning by 3% over Donald Trump. Joe Biden's 2020 margin of victory was 9%.
Maine has been a tale of two states in the last two elections, with the Democratic candidate winning the 1st congressional district and Trump winning the more rural 2nd district. This is significant because Maine is one of only two states -along with Nebraska-that do not use a winner-take-all electoral vote allocation. Here, the statewide popular vote winner gets two electoral votes, while one is assigned to the winner of each district. As a result, Trump won one of the state's four electoral votes both times he was on the ballot.
According to a 2022 study from the U.S. Census Bureau, this state's local governments consist of 87 counties, 2,633 cities, towns, and villages, and 579 special districts.
The median age of the Maine population is 44, and the state's male-to-female ratio is approximately 51% female to 49% male.
Regarding religious preferences, 60% of Maine's population is affiliated with a Christian faith, 7% with a non-Christian religion, and 31% unaffiliated with any faith.
According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Maine was:
White: 92.93%
Two or more races: 3.46%
Black or African American: 1.44%
Asian: 1.1%
Native American: 0.56%
Other race: 0.5%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: 0.02%
Muslims are under 20,000 or 1.2%
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