Overview

• Republican State Rep. Michael Lemelin claimed the Lewiston mass shooting was a punishment from God for Maine's abortion law expansion.
• Lemelin's comments, made during a legislative debate, were met with immediate bipartisan rebuke and led to his censure.
• Both Lemelin and his supporter, Rep. Shelley Rudnicki, were barred from speaking on the chamber floor until formal apologies were issued.
• The remarks were condemned as offensive and harmful to the victims, the House of Representatives, and the people of Maine.
• The censure motion, requiring a two-thirds vote, passed after significant debate and backlash from both parties.