Maine deserves a leader who talks straight, tells the truth, puts people over partisanship, and rolls up her sleeves to make Maine work for the people who live, work, raise families and pay taxes here. That’s why I’m running for governor.
Problems aren’t partisan. Solutions shouldn’t be either. Partisanship in Augusta has stood in the way of common-sense solutions to Maine’s challenges that affect all of us, no matter where we live or our political views. The 2018 election is our opportunity to acknowledge that no one group of people has all the answers and that together we can do this better.
When I was elected to the Maine Legislature in 2006, Republican and Democratic lawmakers had passionate debates about issues, but it wasn’t personal. We commonly broke bread, built relationships across the aisle, and reached better policy outcomes for Maine.
A shift happened with the 2012 election. Instead of transitioning to governing after the election, both parties continued campaigning. The culture of collaboration dissolved, voices of reason were shouted down, and Augusta started to sound more like Washington, D.C.
This partisan fighting is petty, and it’s downright reckless when considering the demographic and economic challenges to Maine’s future that have surfaced during this same period.
Our workforce population is shrinking and thousands of good-paying jobs remain unfilled across our state because there isn’t skilled labor to fill them, the result of years of misplaced priorities, unfunded mandates in education, and a spitball approach to workforce development.
We can reverse these trends and get better results by electing nonpartisan leaders with common-sense solutions who are beholden only to Maine voters. We can make Maine the best place to work in America — where our children can earn a good living, have a career, and raise their families. The path is lit for us. We just have to decide to walk it.
Maine’s businesses, education institutions, and nonprofits are already galvanized around our demographic and workforce challenges. A Hayes administration will support many of these efforts already underway. We will unite Republicans and Democrats in the Maine Legislature around policy initiatives that include: investing in young people who invest in Maine, promoting our institutions of higher learning, boosting worker participation in our economy, leveraging Maine’s growing retiree population, and welcoming legal immigrants and skilled labor to our state. We will also implement many of the data-driven policy recommendations found in the “Making Maine Work” report that was released earlier this year by the Maine State Chamber of Commerce, Maine Development Foundation and Educate Maine.
A Hayes administration will develop a long-term, comprehensive and nonpartisan economic development plan that will help Maine prosper and thrive. The process for developing this roadmap will be inclusive, collaborative, and deliberative. We will roll out the plan at the beginning of 2020 — Maine’s bicentennial anniversary of statehood. Everyone will play a critical role in making Maine work.
This is my vision for our future, where each of us contributes to building Maine’s economy; where we’re all welcomed and connected, skilled and productive, healthy and well; and, where we keep Maine safe and beautiful for our children and grandchildren.
Republicans and Democrats have twice elected me to serve as Maine’s first independent state treasurer because they trust me to rise above the partisan fray and responsibly manage $14 billion in annual transactions on behalf of Maine’s taxpayers. As state treasurer, I have worked with a Republican administration and lawmakers in both parties to help put Maine’s fiscal house in order. When I’m governor, we’ll continue to live within our means and create more transparency and accountability in state government so you know how every dollar is spent.
Governing, when done well, is a shared responsibility and a collaborative exercise. Collaboration is critical to the long-term success of public policy that generates better outcomes and survives future legislatures and administrations. How we do things matters.
Electing another partisan Democrat or Republican as governor guarantees more fighting and gridlock in Augusta. As Maine’s only independent, Clean Elections candidate for governor, I’m offering you the choice to vote for an experienced, independent and collaborative leader who is beholden only to you and who has demonstrated her ability to unite people and solve problems. When I’m governor, partisan and special interests will no longer block compromise solutions, the trend lines will start to move in the right directions, and we’ll generate better outcomes for Mainers.
I ask for your vote in the election for governor on Nov. 6. Together, we can do this better. You can read more about my vision for Maine’s future and policy priorities online at HayesForMaine.com. Thank you.
Terry Hayes, of Buckfield, is state treasurer and an independent candidate for governor.
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