A sitting state senator faces a former legislator on the November ballot in a crucial race that’s become familiar to voters in and around Lincoln County.

For the second time in two years, Sen. Chris Johnson, a Democrat from Somerville, is defending the seat against Les Fossel, a Republican from Alna, who lost to Johnson in 2012 after a recount.

It’s expected to be close again in Senate District 13, a coastal, rural and Republican-leaning district made up of all of Lincoln County but Dresden, along with the towns of Windsor and Washington.

Fossel, a 68-year-old restoration contractor, was a moderate state representative from 2008 to 2012. Johnson, a 57-year-old information technology director, is co-chairman of the Legislature’s Marine Resources Committee and has been a leader on fishery issues, including the effect of ocean acidification on the shellfish industry.

Health care costs will be a large factor in the race. Both see pathways to expanding MaineCare, the federal-state health care program for the poor, under the Affordable Care Act. Republican Gov. Paul LePage repeatedly has vetoed plans to do that.

However, Johnson wants it done quickly, while Fossel said it should be done as part of a larger plan to contain high costs of care.

In 2013, Lincoln County had the oldest population among Maine counties, the nation’s oldest state.

Maine is ranked 28th in median household income, according to Kaiser Family Foundation data, but spends $8,500 annually on health care per person, the fourth-highest total among U.S. states. In 2012, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services accounted for 45 percent of all state spending.

Fossel wants to establish a panel that would craft a bill to cut health care costs by 5 percent in Maine that could be followed by MaineCare expansion and perhaps a hike in Maine’s minimum wage, at least for companies that contract with the state.

“To find the money, you’ve got to cut health care costs,” Fossel said. “There’s nothing else out there.”

Johnson said expansion would help contain costs by focusing on preventive care, “because it’s easier to keep people healthy instead of treating them when they get sick or injured.” He said that, coupled with the economic benefit to Maine’s health care industry, makes it necessary to expand soon.

“I just don’t see the merit of his argument,” Johnson said of Fossel’s plan. “It makes much more sense to be proactive on health care.”

The district in which the candidates are competing is a top swing area, where Republicans outnumber Democrats by about 1,500, but independents outnumber voters in any one party. David Trahan, a Republican who resigned from the Senate when he took a job as executive director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, held the seat before Johnson won an upset over Rep. Dana Dow, R-Waldoboro, in a February 2012 special election.

That November, Fossel lost to Johnson by less than 200 votes after a recount in a race that drew $169,000 in spending from outside groups, largely on ads and mail pieces. Again this year, it has been a top priority for outside Democratic groups looking to defend their narrow four-seat majority over Republicans in the Maine Senate. As of early October, they have poured in more than $37,000 so far to boost Johnson, according to Maine ethics commission data, while Republicans have spent $1,600.

As he did two years ago, Fossel is attacking Johnson as a partisan, calling him “the most liberal senator” in Maine. However, by the Sunlight Foundation’s measure, Johnson was the fourth-most partisan Democrat in the Senate from 2013 to 2014.

“You have to expect those trends to continue,” Fossel said. “He is, quite simply, not a moderate.”

Johnson said he won’t label his opponent, calling his style “pragmatic” and saying he has helped lots of farmers and small businesspeople in the district.

“If Les chooses to label that as liberal or not, that’s up to him,” Johnson said. “I’m working to try and find the best policy for Maine people.”

Michael Shepherd — 370-7652

mshepherd@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @mikeshepherdme