Laurel Libby

Laurel Dawson Munsell Libby is an American activist, Republican politician and interior designer from Maine. She is the representative for Maine House District 64, representing Minot and part of Auburn. Libby was a leader of the 2020 people's veto campaign opposing childhood vaccination laws in Maine and protested public health measures implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19. She was elected to the Maine House in November 2020. Libby was one of seven conservative House Members to be stripped of their committee assignments over refusal to comply with mask mandates in the State House during the COVID-19 pandemic.[1]

Laurel Libby
Member of the Maine House of Representatives
from the 90th district
Assumed office
December 2022
Preceded byLydia Crafts
Member of the Maine House of Representatives
from the 64th district
In office
December 2020 – December 2022
Preceded byBettyann Sheats
Succeeded byColleen Madigan
Personal details
Born1981 (age 41–42)
Bangor, Maine, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseJohn
Children5
EducationRoberts Wesleyan University (BS)
WebsiteCampaign website

Early life and education

Libby was born in Bangor, Maine, and grew up in a large family.[2] She attended Roberts Wesleyan College where she studied nursing, was in the nursing honor society,[3] and competed in women's cross country.[4][5] She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2003.[6]

Libby worked as an ICU nurse at both Maine Medical Center and at St. Mary's Regional Medical Center[6][2][7] and was a member of the MA-1 Medical Disaster Relief team, travelling to Puerto Rico in 2017 as part of the hurricane relief effort.[2][6]

Activism

Anti-vaccine campaign

Libby opposed LD #798, Maine's 2019 law eliminating religious and philosophical exemptions for childhood vaccinations,[8] and was a leader in the 2020 people's veto campaign to overturn it.[9][10][11][12][13] She testified against the bill while it was in committee,[14] describing an alleged reaction experienced by her son that was not treated or documented by a medical provider. Libby explained that she would not be further vaccinating him or two of her other children, and that if the law were to pass and eliminate religious and philosophical exemptions to school-required vaccinations, she and her family would be moving out of Maine.[15][16][17]

When LD #798 passed, Libby canvassed for Mainers for Health and Parental Rights in the effort to get a people's veto of the new law on the statewide ballot in March 2020.[18] The veto attempt failed 27%-73%.[19]

Days after the referendum vote, Libby also testified in committee against LD #2117 "An Act To Expand and Rename the Controlled Substances Prescription Monitoring Program".[20]

COVID-19 response

In December 2020, Libby published an opinion piece in the Lewiston Sun Journal opposing lockdowns in long-term care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Maine.[21] In January 2021, she was criticized along with another representative for wearing a "chin shield", rather than a face covering, while conducting business on the Maine State House property, where CDC-approved face coverings were mandatory COVID-19 precautions.[22][23] The criticism prompted House leaders to clarify and reiterate which face coverings were acceptable for conducting State House duties.[24] While most meetings and committee hearings of the 130th Maine legislature were held remotely during the pandemic, Libby participated from her seat on the House floor.[23]

In August 2021, Libby spoke at an Augusta, Maine, rally opposing a new statewide COVID-19 vaccination requirement for Maine healthcare employees, declaring "To be clear, this is war!". She encouraged healthcare employees to walk away from their jobs rather than become vaccinated.[25]

Maine House

Libby announced her candidacy for Maine House District 64 in May 2020, challenging incumbent Bettyann Sheats.[7] Her campaign was endorsed by the NRA Political Victory Fund,[26] the Make Liberty Win PAC,[10] and the Christian Civic League of Maine;[27] and supported by the Don’t Tread on Maine PAC; the Women’s Leadership Fund; former Maine gubernatorial candidate Shawn Moody; Bruce Poliquin; and Susan Collins’ Dirigo PAC, as well as several fellow anti-vaccination activists from the 2020 people's veto campaign.[10] Libby did not incorporate or mention her anti-vaccine activism while campaigning for the House.[14]

Libby co-sponsored a bill proposed by Representative Heidi Sampson of Alfred seeking to enact the Stop Guilt by Accusation Act, a measure which requires media organizations to follow up on stories involving accused crimes. The bill has been proposed and defeated in several other U.S. states[28] and was defeated in committee on May 5, 2021.[29]

Libby served on the Judiciary committee from December 2020[30] until May 2021 when she and fellow representatives Heidi Sampson, Sherman Hutchins, Chris Johansen, Michael Lemelin, Jim Thorne, and John Andrews entered the Maine State House without required face coverings. The group was stopped by Capitol Police and asked to put on masks, but they refused to do so, requesting a meeting with the House Speaker Ryan Fecteau to clarify a ruling by the Legislative Council requiring the masks at the State House despite a statewide lift on the mask mandate. When the legislators' request for an audience with the Speaker was denied, they continued past capitol police and entered the State House. All seven lawmakers were relieved of their committee assignments effective May 25, 2021.[31][32] Shortly after the incident, Libby posted a fundraising plea on her official Facebook page, drawing ire from Fecteau and some constituents.[33]

Personal life

Libby is a Christian[14] and attends East Auburn Baptist Church in Auburn.[9] She enjoys running[6] and design,[34] and owns and operates Dawson Interiors, a decorating and real estate staging business.[35][7]

She has been married to John Libby, a physical therapist,[34] since 2005.[9] The Libbys have five children.[2][34]

Electoral record
2020 Maine House District 64 Republican Primary
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Laurel Libby 606 100%
Total votes 606 100.0%
2020 Maine House District 64 General Election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Laurel Libby 2,949 54.4%
Democratic Bettyann Sheats 2,471 45.6%
Total votes 4,743 100.0%

References
  1. Andrews, Caitlin (May 24, 2021). "7 conservative Maine lawmakers booted from committees after mask-rule protest". Bangor Daily News. Retrieved November 24, 2022.
  2. "Meet Laurel". Laurel Libby, State Representative. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  3. "Newsmakers for the week of April 28, 2003". Westside News & Greece News. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  4. "2002 AMC Championship Results". Cedarville University Digital Commons. November 9, 2002. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  5. "Women's Cross Country Division Archives" (PDF). National Christian College Athletic Association. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  6. "Laurel Libby". Ballotpedia. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  7. "Laurel Libby seeks state House seat for Auburn and Minot". Sun Journal. May 11, 2020. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  8. Libby, Laurel (May 23, 2019). "An opportunity squandered". Sun Journal. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  9. "Maine House 64: Laurel Dawson Libby". Sun Journal. September 29, 2020. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  10. McFadden, Alyce (October 20, 2020). "Rep. Sheats faces super PAC-backed challenger in Auburn". Maine Beacon. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  11. Libby, Laurel (January 7, 2020). "Stand up to Big Pharma". Sun Journal. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  12. Libby, Laurel (February 26, 2020). "Reject Big Pharma's dictates". Sun Journal. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  13. Libby, Laurel (November 25, 2019). "Vote 'yes' on Question 1 in March". Sun Journal. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  14. McFadden, Alyce (October 9, 2020). "Maine's anti-vaccination activists have turned their sights on political office". Maine Beacon. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  15. Pt 12 Public Hearings on LDs 798, 987. March 13, 2019. Event occurs at 24:38. Archived from the original (Video) on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  16. Clarke, Talia (February 4, 2020). "Maine parents at center of battle over effort to repeal state's new vaccine law". WMTW. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  17. "Question 1: In-depth look at debate over Maine's vaccine exemption law". WMTW. February 27, 2020. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  18. "People's veto on vaccination exemptions may go before voters". Fox 22 WFVX Bangor. September 19, 2019. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  19. Lawlor, Joe (March 3, 2020). "'No' vote – to keep state's new vaccine law – wins by overwhelming margin". Portland Press Herald. Archived from the original on March 5, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  20. Cairns, Taylor (March 10, 2020). "New bill could put Mainers' entire prescription history into online database". WGME. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  21. Libby, Laurel (December 27, 2020). "Op-Ed: Are Lockdowns Benefiting the Elderly?". laurellibby.com. Sun Journal. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  22. Flaherty, Roslyn (January 22, 2021). "Half face shields cause controversy at Maine State House". NewsCenter Maine. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  23. Thistle, Scott (January 22, 2021). "Face shields worn by 2 lawmakers not effective against transmission of COVID-19, says Maine CDC". Portland Press Herald. Archived from the original on January 22, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  24. Thistle, Scott (January 28, 2021). "Maine State House leaders tighten policy aimed at preventing spread of COVID-19". Portland Press Herald. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  25. Collins, Steve (August 18, 2021). "Auburn's Laurel Libby insists 'this is war' to block vaccine mandates". Sun Journal. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
  26. "NRA-PVF | Grades | Maine". nrapvf.org. NRA-PVF. Archived from the original on November 3, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  27. "Christian Civic League of Maine Candidate Endorsement List". CCLMaine.org. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  28. Collins, Steve (March 6, 2021). "New bill that targets press is part of a nationwide push". Yahoo! News. Sun Journal. Archived from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  29. LaFlamme, Mark (May 6, 2021). "'Guilt by Accusation' bill defeated in Judiciary Committee". Sun Journal. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2021.
  30. "Maine House of Representatives". legislature.maine.gov. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  31. Andrews, Caitlin (May 24, 2021). "7 conservative Maine lawmakers booted from committees after mask-rule protest". Bangor Daily News. Archived from the original on May 25, 2021. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
  32. "Maine lawmakers lose assignments after mask confrontation". WMTW. May 25, 2021. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  33. Collins, Steve (May 26, 2021). "State House speaker zings Auburn's Laurel Libby". Lewiston Sun Journal. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  34. Wright, Virginia (December 2019). "Stylishly Sensible: Laurel Libby gives her Auburn bungalow a sensible makeover". Maine Homes. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  35. "Rep. Laurel Libby". Maine House Republicans. December 7, 2020. Archived from the original on March 7, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
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