State Sen. Mattie Daughtry of Brunswick in Senate Chambers in Augusta on Friday. Maine Senate Democrats have chosen her to be Senate president.  Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer

Maine Senate Democrats have chosen Sen. Mattie Daughtry of Brunswick to be Senate president and tapped senators from Portland and Falmouth to fill out a leadership team for the upcoming session.

A formal vote will be held Dec. 4, and if the vote is the same as on Friday, Daughtry will be Senate president and first in line to become governor if that office becomes vacant for any reason in the next two years.

Daughtry, 37, said it’s been an “absolutely amazing” journey to become Senate president.

“I’ve been working in this building since I was an angry young person at 25 who thought I was disenfranchised by government,” Daughtry said in an interview with the Press Herald on Friday.

Democrats also voted for Sen. Teresa Pierce of Falmouth to be Senate majority leader and Sen. Jill Duson of Portland as assistant majority leader. Daughtry replaces outgoing Senate President Troy Jackson, who could not run for reelection because of term limits.

Democrats retained control of the Maine Senate in Tuesday’s election. The party also expects to keep control of the Maine House, although Republicans built a larger minority by picking up seats.

Daughtry was one of two primary sponsors of the paid family leave bill – the other was Democratic state Rep. Kristen Cloutier of Lewiston. The bill passed into law in 2023, and is set to take effect in 2025. She is a native of Brunswick and co-owner of Moderation Brewing in Brunswick.

Daughtry – who described herself as “stubborn” – said she’s learned about coalition building and how to never give up on a topic that she cares about, such as paid family leave, which she first introduced 12 years ago. She said the first bill “was truthfully not ready for prime time,” but since then she’s revised the proposal many times, and worked to build a consensus by trying to balance the needs of businesses with workers.

“It’s too easy to have a two-year view,” said Daughtry, referring to how often state government elections take place. “I don’t look at things in a two-year time frame. I look at long-term planning, so I’ve got a bit of a reputation of someone being able to pull off something that was considered impossible.”

Daughtry said it became frustrating at times because it took more than a decade to get paid leave across the finish line. But she also learned the importance of advocating for the bill with the public, holding community forums with coalitions of workers and business owners.

Daughtry said in her own life she has seen the need for paid leave, such as when she cared for a dying relative, and another time when she was hit by a vehicle while riding a bicycle and needed time off to recover. Daughtry said she also wants to have children one day, and having paid leave will be helpful. At the same time, owning a business gave her the perspective of a small-business owner.

“I had to run it through our own payroll (at Moderation Brewing) to see what it would cost for not only our business, but also our employees,” Daughtry said.

The law imposes a 1% payroll tax, split evenly between employer and employee. Those who qualify – such as workers who are ill or need to care for newborns or other family members – will be able to take up to 12 weeks of leave at 90% of wages. The taxes will start being collected in 2025 and workers will be able to start claiming benefits in 2026.

Daughtry said she has no set agenda as Senate president, but knows that “energy prices, health care, housing and property taxes” will be among the issues in the 2025 legislative session.

Destie Hohman Sprague, executive director of the Maine Women’s Lobby, which worked with Daughtry on the paid leave bill, said she’s “delighted” that Democrats chose Daughtry as Senate president. She believes Daughtry will continue to be a champion of women’s health and rights.

“I think what has made her such a capable leader, and successful in being able to move these big systems is that she really takes people seriously, listens deeply, builds relationships and is willing to consider different sides of an issue,” Sprague said.