Maine House Of Representatives District 135 Candidate Surveys, 2022

This article shows responses from candidates in the 2022 election for Maine House of Representatives District 135 who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.

Click here to see candidates and election results.
Click here to see Candidate Connection survey responses.

Candidates and election results[edit]

General election

The general election will occur on November 8, 2022.

General election for Maine House of Representatives District 135

Daniel Sayre and Jared Hirshfield are running in the general election for Maine House of Representatives District 135 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate
		Daniel Sayre (D)
		Jared Hirshfield (R)

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Todd DiFede (R)

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses[edit]

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Survey responses from candidates in this race

Click on a candidate's name to visit their Ballotpedia page.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

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Jared Hirshfield (R)

As a young person living in Kennebunk, I have a unique view on Maine's population crises. I want to stay in Maine and build a life here. Current policies make that future difficult to achieve.

For there to be increased opportunities for young people like me to live, work, raise a family, and be secure and safe in our later years, we must play a role in developing and advocating policies that are in the best interests of every generation.

I believe municipalities and communities are the best decision makers. On most policy issues, Augusta is not fit to tell Kennebunkers how their town should be run. If community is to be preserved, home rule must be protected.

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Daniel Sayre (D)

Grow and diversify Maine’s economy. Through leading a national summit on educating the technical workforce, I've learned how to help Maine develop a stronger technical workforce and grow our Tech and Manufacturing sectors.

Provide more opportunities for Maine’s young people to build thriving careers without leaving the state by making opportunities for career education and skills training in High School, Community College and elsewhere more affordable, visible, and attractive.

Address the housing cost crisis with policies that increase inventory of housing to rent and own at prices that working-class people can afford. This includes removing some restrictions on Accessory Dwelling Units, controlling the proliferation of short-term rentals, and working with builders and developers to find ways to make new home development more cost-efficient.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Jared Hirshfield (R)

-Providing greater access to technical, trade, and vocational programs for all students

-Preserving local control of town ordinances and transparency in our schools -Protecting vulnerable seniors by prioritizing funding for nursing homes and long-term care facilities -Reducing taxes and regulations to encourage individuals and businesses to remain in Maine and to consider relocating here -Supporting Maine’s fishing and lobstering industries -Addressing our addiction crisis by increasing access to the most effective strategies for recovery -Increasing the availability of more efficient and reliable energy sources

Daniel Sayre (D)

In addition to the economic priorities listed above, I am passionate about fulfilling the American promise of liberty and justice for all. This includes advocating for full access to reproductive care, including abortion; ensuring that access to education, economic opportunity, and all civil rights are not infringed based on a person's racial, ethnic, religious, gender or sexual identity, and that we correct laws and policies that have had proven discriminatory impacts. I am also passionate about protecting Maine's environment and doing all we can at the state level to address the immediate threat of climate change through strategies to curb future carbon emissions and mitigate the impacts of the climate change that is already upon us.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

Daniel Sayre (D)

These three books have had a major impact on my thoughts about politics:

1. The Righteous Mind, by Jonathan Haidt. A social psychologist, Haidt delves deeply into how people construct their moral judgments and how they can stray from our underlying values. It also shows how we can reduce conflict by finding ways to connect with one another on our underlying values. 2. American Sphinx by Joseph Ellis. This incisive biography of Thomas Jefferson dissects several of the most puzzling and contradictory aspects of his intellect and character, and shows how they shaped the challenges of the framers' generation and political patterns that persist to this day. Ellis's analysis make clear the peril of putting the founding generation on a pedestal and demonstrates how the shortcomings and compromises of that political generation laid the foundation for conflicts we are still working out.

3. Union, by Colin Woodard illustrates how the United States has long struggled with competing narratives of who we are as a nation and what we aspire to be. Much of our current division is rooted in this debate between seeing America as having achieved a past state of perfection we must return to, or believing America is a promise of perfection that we have yet to reach and must continue to strive toward. Understanding both perspectives is essential to finding common ground and making progress together.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

Daniel Sayre (D)

My first job was cleaning a Howard Johnson's restaurant at an I-95 rest-stop in Connecticut. I cleaned the kitchen and bathrooms as well as the parking lot. I held the job for 3 months in the summer of 1981.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

Jared Hirshfield (R)

Yes, politics is personal. It's very easy to vilify the other side if you don't have a personal relationship with them. Maintaining friendships across the aisle is not only necessary for breaking through gridlock, but is also beneficial to our political climate as a whole.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Jared Hirshfield (R)

I believe Maine's current bipartisan system is fair. Maine's Apportionment Commission works diligently to make compromises and create balanced and fair districts. I believe the 2/3 legislative supermajority required successfully prevents one party from creating unfairly gerrymandered districts.

Daniel Sayre (D)

Maine puts redistricting in the hands of an evenly balanced bi-partisan commission and that's the right way to do it.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Jared Hirshfield (R)

Absolutely, the interests of constituents must always be paramount. People often overlook bipartisan legislation during polarized times. The Maine Legislature has a history of popular bipartisan legislation that contains compromises. Working across the aisle is often necessary to get work done.

Daniel Sayre (D)

Policymaking works best when multiple perspectives are at the table and all voices have a chance to be heard. Many of the most valuable conversations that I've had at voters' doors are with people who hold views far different from my own. It's essential that I hear and consider their perspectives, and I will take that same openness to my work with members of all parties in the legislature. The only area in which I am not prepared to compromise is when access to equal opportunity, civil and human rights, or equal protection under the law is being threatened. There can be no compromise on ensuring equal justice for all.

Maine House Of Representatives District 135 Candidate Surveys, 2022

Candidates and election results[edit]

General election for Maine House of Representatives District 135

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses[edit]

See also[edit]