HOUSE DISTRICT 45
Timmons defeats Kumiszcza in Republican primary
Mike Timmons of Cumberland defeated Joe Kumiszcza in the House District 45 Republican primary.
Timmons collected 389 votes, or 71 percent, while Kumiszcza got 162 votes, or 29 percent. Timmons will face Democrat Dale Denno, also of Cumberland, in the Nov. 4 general election to represent Cumberland and part of Gray.
Kumiszcza, 58, a Web-related business owner, was named a New England high-tech all-star by Mass High Tech in 2004 and served on the steering committee for the Blaine House Conference on Maine’s Creative Economy, appointed by Democratic Gov. John Baldacci.
Timmons, 71, is a retired teacher, principal and district administrator who worked in Windham public schools for 38 years.
HOUSE DISTRICT 50
Tucker has narrow lead in Democratic primary
Ralph Tucker appeared to edge out Jackie Sartoris in the District 50 Democratic primary.
Results of the race showed Tucker leading with 50.52 percent of the votes over Sartoris who came up short with 49.48 percent.
The Associated Press considered it too close to call.
Brunswick Democrats went to the polls to choose between two veteran public servants who have waged a long and at times feisty primary campaign for an open seat in the Maine Legislature.
The District 50 race was Brunswick’s first contested Democratic primary for a legislative seat in 14 years.
Tucker, 66, is a retired lawyer and Maine District Court judge who served 11 years on the Maine Workers’ Compensation Board, including seven years as chairman.
At the local level, he served six years on the Brunswick School Board – including two years as chairman – as well as a year on the Town Council before stepping down to become a judge.
He made education his top issue, pledging to work to increase state funding for public schools. He is also strongly critical of the charter school push in Maine.
Sartoris, 49, is an elder-law attorney who served four terms on the Brunswick Town Council, and recently served on the town’s sewer board.
HOUSE DISTRICT 35
Bates wins Democratic primary over Salisbury
A young, aspiring politician beat out a longtime Westbrook resident and school board member in a Democratic primary race to represent House District 35 in Westbrook.
Dillon Bates, 26, defeated Sue Salisbury, 44, in Tuesday’s vote 325 – 208.
The seat is currently held by Democrat Ann Peoples, who cannot run again because of term limits.
Bates, who is new to the city, works as an athletics coach in area school departments.
A former intern for U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud and member of the Maine Young Democrats, Bates argued he has more experience in state government than Salisbury.
Salisbury, a fraud investigator for L.L. Bean, has lived in Westbrook for more than 20 years and said she best knew the city’s needs.
HOUSE DISTRICT 11
Fecteau easily defeats Flood in Democratic primary
Ryan Fecteau easily won the Democratic primary for House District 11 in Biddeford.
The seat is being vacated by Democratic Rep. Paulette Beaudoin, who cannot run again because of term limits.
David Flood, a magazine publisher and former city councilor who is active in downtown redevelopment, ran against Fecteau, a Biddeford native who helped run marriage equality campaigns while attending college.
Fecteau finished with 493 votes, while Flood had 263. More than 12 percent of Biddeford’s 13,500 registered voters cast ballots.
Fecteau will run against Republican Debi Davis in November.
Fecteau, 21, became involved in local politics as a high school representative to the school board.
In 2011, he was a York County field organizer for Equality Maine; the following year he was rehired as a field organizer for Mainers United for Marriage.
SENATE DISTRICT 25
Clean elections Democrat wins primary
Former Falmouth Town Councilor and Chairwoman Cathy Breen handily defeated Yarmouth Town Council Chairman Steve Woods in the Senate District 25 Democratic primary Tuesday.
The vote was 2,163 to 1,028, with Breen taking 68 percent, the Associated Press reported.
“The results show that one can win as a Clean Elections candidate with very little money, a lot of volunteers and talking one-on-one with people,” Breen said of her win Tuesday night.
Breen spent $8,059 as a state-supported candidate, while Woods spent $53,073 as a self-financed candidate, according to campaign finance reports.
Woods didn’t answer his phone Tuesday night.
Breen is set to face Republican William Gardiner of Yarmouth in the Nov. 4 general election. With the incumbent, independent Sen. Dick Woodbury of Yarmouth, stepping down instead of seeking re-election, the outcome of the District 25 race could help decide which party holds a majority in the state Senate.
Business experience, party affiliation and campaign financing were central issues in the primary race for a seat representing Chebeague Island, Cumberland, Falmouth, Gray, Long Island, Yarmouth and part of Westbrook.
Breen, 48, who is a community volunteer and board member of Spurwink Services, said the Maine Senate should include people with various backgrounds and experiences, so it represents broad interests and reaches optimum solutions to Maine’s educational, health care and economic challenges.
Woods, 54, who owns and operates several marketing companies and co-owns the Maine Red Claws, said he believes economic development is the best way to address many challenges facing Maine, including health care, education, energy dependence and the environment.
Woods returned to the Democratic Party for this race, after running as an independent candidate for governor in 2010 and for U.S. senator in 2012, and withdrawing from both races.
SENATE DISTRICT 33
Incumbent Tuttle has slight advantage over Rep. Boland
Results were not available late Tuesday in the Senate District 33 Democratic primary in central York County that pitted two veteran lawmakers who want to return to Augusta.
Sen. John Tuttle, facing his first primary challenge in more than two decades, ran against Rep. Andrea Boland, a four-term state legislator who cannot run again for that seat because of term limits.
With 66 percent of precincts reporting, Tuttle had a slight lead of 629 votes to Boland’s 556.
The winner of the primary faces political newcomer Adam McGee, a Republican from Sanford, in November.
District 33 covers Cornish, Limerick, Newfield, Parsonsfield, Sanford, Shapleigh and Waterboro.
Tuttle, 63, of Sanford, has represented the Sanford area in the Legislature for 28 years, including 11 terms in the House from 1979 to 2010 and three terms in the Senate. He currently is chairman of the York County legislative delegation and said he plans to run for Senate majority leader if re-elected. He serves on the
Judiciary Committee and is chairman of the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee.
Boland, 67, a self-employed title examiner, represented part of Sanford in the House for four consecutive terms. She served on the State and Local Government and Government Oversight committees.
HOUSE DISTRICT 7
Foley wins GOP primary, to face Howard in November
Robert “Bob” Foley, a Wells selectman, overwhelmingly won the Republican nomination for the House District 7 seat in Wells.
Foley ran against Peter Leon, the president of the local Rotary club. Foley won by a vote of 420-124.
Foley will next face Democrat Joachim Howard in the general election in November. House District 7 encompasses part of Wells.
Four-term Rep. Kathleen Chase is vacating the seat because of term limits.
Foley, 61, was elected to the Board of Selectmen in 2009, after serving from 1992-98 and 2000-03.
He served on multiple state committees, including one on which he helped write the state’s beach management policy and sand dunes rules. If he wins the November election, he would serve the remainder of his term as selectman, Foley said.
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