ASSOCIATED PRESS • December 27, 2021
Maine experienced greatest population growth in nearly two decades during the pandemic because of migration into the state. Maine’s population growth was relatively anemic in the decade before the pandemic, gaining just 2.6% compared to a national average of 7.4%. But it increased nearly 10,000 compared through July, compared to the year before. The growth was driven entirely by migration into the state as Maine deaths still exceeded births by more than 6,300 during that period.