Dear Editor:

Alna was my home for almost 40 years, and I was a selectman there for six terms. And my profession brought me to the legislature regularly. So over the years I saw lots of legislators and legislative candidates come and go. None impressed me as much as Evan Goodowsky. Here is why I support him:

Evan was born, raised, and schooled in the Midcoast in this century. It’s his generation that is directly impacted by the stunning loss of affordable housing and good-paying skilled jobs in the Midcoast. Without these our young families won’t have a shot at a decent middle-class life in the towns they grew up in. For people like his two opponents (and me) who are secure and in their seventies that is just an observable fact. For Evan and his peers, it’s personal and an existential challenge. Big difference. Evan is passionate about keeping our communities economically diverse for the next generation.

Also, Evan is running as an Independent out of conviction, not expediency. He knows that younger people are disillusioned with zero sum party politics, and the rest of us are just tired of it. We just want government to work for all of us, and that means compromise and collaboration. Evan has no agenda except to solve problems, and I believe he has the intellect, personality and, most important, the integrity to do that. He will earn the respect of his peers, regardless of party, and will work across the aisle to achieve practical solutions.

Lastly, as a former selectman, I’m impressed with how well Evan understands the challenges facing our small towns, gained through his work as a municipal assessor. His experience is current, hands-on, and practical, and he knows how legislative actions can sometimes burden town governments.

It’s time for those of us whose governing ideas were shaped in different times to hand leadership to those whose lives and careers will span much of this century.

Evan Goodowsky is a truly independent 21st century leader. Please send him to Augusta to represent us all.

Doug Baston

Gardiner