When, after her many years of service to the state and the country, Sen. Olympia Snowe unexpectedly opted against running for a fourth term in 2012, people in Maine had an opportunity.

We could have moved on to the next generation of leadership, electing someone younger — whether a Democrat, Republican or independent — who could have turned the page for the state.

In the election to replace Snowe, Charlie Summers, then 52, and Cynthia Dill, then 47, were the Republican and Democratic candidates, respectively. Had either of them won, they would be the second-youngest member of the delegation after Jared Golden today.

Instead, independent former Gov. Angus King — who’s three years older than Snowe — cruised to victory over both of them and has held the seat ever since. He’s even filed for reelection in 2030; by the end of that term he’d be 93.

Now, as long as someone is able to win reelection and can still do the job, there’s no reason they should be barred from office after they hit the Social Security retirement age. It’s up to their constituents to make that decision on their own; we shouldn’t have some arbitrary cut-off point to serve in Congress.

There are plenty of 35-year-olds out there who are far less capable of doing the job than some 85-year-olds. Much as I frequently and vehemently disagree with Angus King on the issues, unlike when Joe Biden was running for reelection, I have no doubts about his ability to do the job. 

However, it’s a whole different matter when it comes to choosing new candidates. We should be looking for young, fresh faces to challenge incumbents rather than turning to folks their age or older.

The Maine Republican Party has plenty of younger, ambitious legislators and politicians — especially in the 2nd District — who could have mounted a competitive challenge. Instead, just as Mainers did when Snowe retired, we turned to Paul Le Page, a former governor. If elected, LePage would be one of the oldest freshmen in Congress’ history. Just as with King and Snowe, if he wins he’d be older than his predecessor.

This isn’t just an issue for Republicans, either. Janet Mills, the choice of the national Democratic establishment to take on incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, is older than her by five years. In her case, she at least is facing younger primary opponents, and not just Graham Platner. Former congressional staffer Jordan Wood is running as well. They’re both significantly younger than Mills, and present different options for Democrats who want a fresh face.

Lest you think that it’s appropriate that we have an older delegation since we’re the oldest state (in terms of median age), it doesn’t have to be that way. While Maine is the oldest state, neighboring New Hampshire isn’t far behind, ranking third.

Like us, New Hampshire has a four-person congressional delegation, but it’s significantly younger. The average age of its delegation is 57, while Maine’s is 66.5 — and if Mills and LePage both won, it would jump to 76.25. So, just because we’re an older state doesn’t mean that three of our four members of Congress have to be significantly older than the statewide median age. 

Now, none of this is to say that voters should simply reject older candidates, or always vote for the younger candidate. I won’t do that myself, and I wouldn’t expect the rest of you to do that either. Vote for the candidate who you believe has the ability to do the job and best represents your values.

However, it is a call for both parties to do better. Neither party should be so singularly focused on retaining power that they’re terrified of voters having actual choices. If you’re considering running for office, don’t be dissuaded by a well-established incumbent or party favorite; just be realistic about your chances.

These are unique times, with rapidly shifting challenges facing both our country and the world. We need leaders who will be able to adapt, regardless of their party or age. If that’s older candidates, then that’s fine, but the parties should let the voters decide that, not simply throw up a name and then work to stifle the opposition.

If voters had more choices, we may well end up with a younger, more diverse and more innovative congressional delegation. That would be a win for Maine and the country.