The following candidates have filed papers for election to the Maine House of Representatives.
District 110 serving Gray and Windham
Incumbent Mark Bryant
Democrat Mark Bryant, 49, of Albion Road in Windham, is running for re-election to the District 110 seat in the House of Representatives.
An employee for the Maine Turnpike Authority, Bryant is proud of his work with DirigoChoice that aims to provide affordable healthcare to small businesses and the self-employed.
“The basic premise of Dirigo is to hold healthcare costs in check,” Bryant said. “You have two monopolies, the healthcare system and the insurance careers. DirigoChoice aims to make healthcare affordable, comprehensive and available.”
During his time in the Legislature, Bryant’s served on a variety of legislative committees and says he’s come to understand a broad scope of issues facing Maine citizens. He’s sponsored a series of bills with his brother – and fellow legislator – Sen. Bill Bryant (D – Oxford) such as a recent bill to give military reservists more downtime before they return to their civilian jobs.
Challenger: Clayton Haskell
Republican Clayton Haskell, 53, of Harriet Avenue in Windham, is running for the District 110 seat in the House of Representatives.
Owner of Pleasant River Farm, Haskell has seen a dramatic change from Windham’s heritage as a rural farming community into a booming residential suburbia. A former chairman of the Windham Planning Board, Haskell says he is in touch with the needs and concerns of area business owners.
“I think it’s time to have some fairness up there and a little common sense,” Haskell said. “We need to give the people in the legislature a reality check.”
He is proponent of “current use” taxation where land is assessed for what it is currently used for and not for its potential use. He says this would allow more land to remain open instead of forcing residents to sell their land to residential developers because of the property tax burden.
District 111 serving Windham
Incumbent: Gary Plummer
Republican Gary Plummer, 59, of Gray Road, is running for re-election to the District 111 seat in the House of Representatives.
A retired school teacher and former longtime county commissioner, Plummer says he feels the enormity of his job everyday he walks the halls of the Legislature and is honored to have served thus far.
“I’m running again because I very much enjoy what I’m doing up here and hope I’m making a difference,” Plummer said.
He says if re-elected he will continue to control government spending and support small business in Maine. A member of the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee, Plummer is proud of his bipartisan endeavors with fellow local legislators like Sen. Bill Diamond to pass “Tina’s Law” that creates tougher penalties for people caught driving with suspended licenses.
Challenger: Geoffrey Heckman
Democrat Geoffrey Heckman, 35, of River Road in Windham, is running for the District 111 seat in the House of Representatives.
A mortgage lender for Cornerstone Home Loans in Portland, Heckman aims to represent a younger group of citizens in Windham – young families and their social values. He hopes to bring new ideas and a new face to the debate in the Legislature.
“It’s time for a change,” Heckman said. “The average age in the House of Representatives is 54 years old. If we keep sending the same guard up there, things will never change.”
To keep young people in the state, Maine needs to create better jobs with better pay, he says. He sees the issues of education, jobs and healthcare as intertwined and believes strength in education results in healthier, more civic-minded citizens.
District 101 serving Naples, Casco and Poland
Incumbent: Richard Cebra
Republican Richard Cebra, 42, of Steamboat Landing in Naples, is running for re-election to the District 110 seat in the House of Representatives.
Owner of Steamboat Landing Miniature Golf in Naples, Cebra says less government is better, especially when it comes to supporting small business. He’s taken a vow to never raise taxes and works to apply “sound-business practices” to state government.
“If the state would get out of the way, the entrepreneurial spirit would come back to Maine and support small business,” Cebra said.
Cebra serves on the Maine Inland Fisheries and Wildlife committee that oversees regulation of wild fish and game in the state. Recently, he worked with fellow legislators to give MSAD #61 school district more state aid after a sharp decline in funding. He is also committed to making sure Naples causeway bridge gets replaced.
Challenger: Thomas Bossie
Democrat Thomas Bossie, 46, of Point Sebago Road in Casco is running for the District 101 seat in the House of Representatives.
A mortgage lender for Cornerstone Home Loans in Portland, Bossie is worried that more and more Mainers are just struggling to get by.
“I’ve seen a grand depletion in our state’s workforce and ability to keep jobs,” Bossie said. “People are stretched to the limit. Making ends meet is a project in and of itself.”
He would work toward student loan “incentives” so more Maine graduates would stay in the workforce. He aims to be involved with the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife to preserve habitat in the Lakes Region and would work to repair Route 11 in Naples, which is one of the worst roads in Maine, he says.
District 102 serving Standish
Incumbent: Gary Moore
Republican Gary W. Moore, of Oak Hill Road, says he’s running for re-election to his District 102 seat in Maine’s House of Representatives because he enjoys representing the people of Standish.
“The theme that drives me is that we have a serious lack of leadership in the state government,” he said. “I’m going to instigate a much more aggressive role for the committees to re-establish their responsibilities. They’ve been established to have oversight but the governors over time have taken that power away from them.”
During his term in the House, Moore has served on the Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee. Moore, 62, is a retired school superintendent and human resource consultant.
Challenger: Michael Shaw
Democrat Michael A. Shaw, of Perimeter Avenue, is the Democratic challenger for the District 102 seat. Shaw, 33, says he’s a “regular working guy” (Shaw works as a conductor with Amtrak) who thinks there should be more young, working representatives in Augusta. Shaw believes the critical issues facing Maine are the economy, education and the environment.
“I think helping small business owners in the state is crucial because three-quarters of jobs in Maine are in small businesses,” he said.
When it comes to education, Shaw says Maine needs “fair school funding” for higher education as well as kindergarten through high school and better pay for teachers. Shaw says he’s “not a fanatic” when it comes to the environment, but he does believe the state must invest in renewable energies.
District 103 serving Raymond, Frye Island, Standish, Poland
Incumbent: John Robinson
Republican John C. Robinson, 33, of Raymond, is the incumbent for the District 103 House seat. He is running for re-election because he wants to continue his work to promote business in the state.
“I want to see the business climate improve in Maine,” he said. “We’ve done good work in bringing issues to the forefront and I truly think there are a lot of issues we can bring forward if Republicans are in the majority.”
During his term in Augusta, Robinson has served on the Business, Research and Economic Development Committee. He was recently appointed to the Ethics Advisory Committee, a new panel assembled to study the state’s ethics rules that apply to lawmakers. Pleased by the appointment, Robinson said he believes he’s “generated a reputation for being able to work with people on both sides of the aisle.”
Robinson owns Robinson Manufacturing Company in Oxford.
Challenger: Mark Gendron
Democrat Mark Gendron, 54, of Raymond is challenging for Robinson’s seat. He would like to bring Raymond’s example of working together to the state level.
“I feel that what we’re doing in Raymond is something I hope we can carry over to help the state,” he said. “We have collaborative efforts in many facets of town government – the select board works together. We have open lines of communication with the people in the town and a positive attitude.”
Gendron wants like to emphasize the importance of providing services while keeping the state affordable. He also believes Maine needs to become more attractive to companies and encourage them to use the state’s student base. Graduating high school students with the computer skills comparable to college students is one incentive Maine can use to attract businesses to “tap into that employment pool.”
Serving in his second year as a Raymond selectman, Gendron is part owner of Lakes Region Imports.
District 99 serving Sebago, Cornish, Denmark, Limington and Baldwin
Incumbent: Philip Cressey
Republican Philip A. Cressey, Jr., 44, from Cornish, is running for a fourth term because he wants “to be able to bring some common sense and fiscal responsibility to Augusta.”
“We should be providing low-cost health insurance and covering those without health insurance,” he said. “The Democrats in Maine refuse to let people who can’t afford health insurance to pay a little bit. People should be able to pay what they want and can afford and they should be covered.”
Cressey says up until a short time ago, Democrats in Augusta would not consider any viewpoint of a Republican when the topic was Dirigo Health. But now, he said, they’ve changed their minds and are asking for Republicans to be on the committee. Cressey said it’s possible for the two parties to work together and, when they do, “we have something positive.”
Challenger: Katherine Marie Smith
Democrat Katherine Marie Smith, or Kate, as she’s called, is challenging for the District 99 seat. Smith says she’s running “because it’s time for a change.” Issues important to Smith include curbing Maine’s rising taxes, giving the state’s residents affordable healthcare and improving education.
“My platform is listening to the voters and what’s important to my constituents while continuing to consider what I think is best for Maine,” Smith said.
Her challenge is identifying concerns from people in the five different towns she would represent. She cites the Poland Springs water issue as important for residents in Denmark while the use of the lake is key to Sebago’s voters. She’s planning on attending their town meetings and will be going door-to-door to meet the voters.
Smith, 30, is a physical therapist at the Cedars in Portland. She has served as a Sebago Days Trustee and as a member of the Spaulding Memorial Library Board of Directors.
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