Following the announcement that Speaker Sara Gideon will be the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate, Maine Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Marra issued the following statement:

 

“Speaker Gideon’s record of public service is clear: she knows how to fight for what matters most to Maine people. As Speaker of the Maine House she has championed efforts to expand access to affordable health care, direct resources to combat the opioid epidemic in Maine, and protect our environment. She’s also proven that she can deliver real results for Maine people by passing laws to help control the skyrocketing price of prescription drugs, provide property tax refunds to working families, and prevent insurance companies from discriminating against Mainers with pre existing conditions. We are thrilled that Maine Democratic voters have selected Sara Gideon as our nominee and we look forward to working together in the months ahead.

 

“I would also like to thank Bre Kidman and Betsy Sweet for running strong primary campaigns that featured bold ideas about how we can build a better future for Maine together. Bre’s candidacy removed hurdles for future non-binary candidates for federal office and Betsy’s campaign brought an energy and passion to the fight for working people that will help make our party stronger.

 

“Senator Susan Collins is more unpopular with Maine voters than she’s ever been before and Speaker Gideon has what it takes to win in November. While Collins has proven that she’s in the pocket of corporate special interests time and again, Speaker Gideon has pledged to not accept any money from corporate PACs and has a proven record of confronting the pharmaceutical and insurance industries. Mainers deserve a Senator who puts our state first, and Sara Gideon has shown us that’s exactly what she’ll do when we send her to the Senate.”

 

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