Patrick E. Hunt
Age: 64
Residence: Island Falls
What other political offices have you held? If none, what other offices, honors or titles have you earned? This is my first time running for political office. I am a member of the Aroostook County Bar Association and the Maine Bar Association. I have been a trustee of the Millinocket Regional Hospital since 1987, a trustee of the Emma V. Milliken Medical Center and a former trustee of the Katahdin Valley Health Center. I belong to the Island Falls VFW post, the Oakfield American Legion and the Ashland American Veterans post. I am a member of the Island Falls Historical Society, the Maine Historical Society and the New England Historic Genealogical Society. I am a member of Maine Right to Life.
I belong to the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, the NRA, the Benedicta Snow Rovers, the Island Falls Free-Wheelers ATV Club, and the Island Falls Lakes Association. I am a sponsor of several local teams, including the Hunt Law and Sherman softball teams in the Houlton, Sherman and Millinocket areas. During this election cycle, I have received the endorsement of the Maine State Nurses Association and a grade of “A” from the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine.
What is your career background? I am an attorney with my own law practice in my hometown of Island Falls, serving the greater Aroostook County and northern Penobscot areas since 1983. I am a 1964 graduate of IF High School, where I was a three-year varsity letter winner in basketball. I served in the U.S. Army in Korea in 1967-68. I received my B.S. in economics from Ricker College in 1971. I served as an agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration in Boston from 1971-83. I received my J.D. from the New England School of Law in 1982. My wife, Rose Ann Hunt, is a nurse practitioner who has worked in the Island Falls and Millinocket areas since 1983. We have raised three children together, all graduates of Southern Aroostook Community High School in Dyer Brook.
What made you decide to run for this office? I am running to serve the hard-working people of my area. With the loss of several major employers in our area due to unfair foreign trade laws, I felt strongly that it was time to step up and serve my community in political office. I want to fight for state legislation to keep our jobs in northern Maine and America.
What do you see as the most important issue facing the community you will serve? The big issue is to keep our jobs from going overseas; we also need to attract industry and create jobs for our hard-working people in northern Penobscot and southern Aroostook counties.
What do you see as your primary goal, if elected? I will fight for jobs, local industry, and small businesses for the people of northern Maine, to ensure a brighter economic future for us and our children.
Why should people vote for you? As a native of Island Falls who has served as a lawyer for District 9 for over 25 years, I offer something unique to my fellow citizens: a personal, life-long, local understanding of our economic and political issues, joined with the education, legal background and business experience to intelligently advocate for state legislation that will help our region. The hard-working people of northern Maine deserve to have effective, thoughtful, locally-minded representation in the State house; a vote for Pat Hunt is a vote for the voice of northern Maine to be heard and respected in Augusta.
Ricky D. Long
Age: 50
Residence: Sherman
What other political offices have you held? I am a former selectman for the town of Sherman, six years of which I was chairman of the board. I am the Fire Chief for the town of Sherman and I am trail master for the Molunkus Valley Sno-Drifters. I am also president of the Sherman Volunteer Fire Department.
I am one of the club directors for the Maine Snowmobile Association. And, I sit on the board of directors for the Molunkus Valley Sno-Drifters club.
What is your career background? I’ve been a logger and a firefighter.
What made you decide to run for this office? I have always been interested in politics, and with the lack of jobs in this area, I decided to get involved and try to make a difference.
What do you see as the most important issue facing the community you will serve? Lack of jobs and high taxes.
What do you see as your primary goal, if elected? I want to lower taxes and stop state overregulation of businesses so they can afford to do business in the state of Maine. Then, they will create jobs.
Why should people vote for you? I am one of the people who live in this district. I was born and raised here, and I know the hard times we are in and I know what has to be done to fix the problems with our state.
I know if elected I will have to make some hard choices. I am a working man and I will work for you and not the special interest groups. I also am a conservative.
Robert “Bo” Zabierek
Age: 57
Residence: Sherman Mills
What other political offices have you held? If none, what other offices, honors or titles have you earned? Currently I hold the office of president of the Southern Aroostook Vocational Education Association. And, I am also a member of the Leadership Team of the Southern Aroostook Math & Science Partnership, a three-year grant administered by the Great Schools Partnership of Portland, which promotes collaboration between area schools, higher education and vocational education. I was also a candidate for State Representative in Maine House District 9 in 2008.
What is your career background? I worked as the general services manager for WSBK-TV38 and CBS\Boston for 20 years and retired. I am now an applied academics teacher at the Region Two School of Applied Technology in Houlton where I help students with credit recovery, remediation and national standards\vocational testing.
What made you decide to run for this office? This is my second run for the office. I’ve been motivated to run to bring 21st century jobs and training to northern Penobscot and southern Aroostook counties. Thanks to Independent former Governor Angus King and his MLTI laptop initiative, we have a workforce graduating from our high schools that are computer literate, highly motivated and ready for the opportunity to excel. We need to promote good-paying jobs and training opportunities to entice them to remain in the area and contribute to our economy and tax base.
What do you see as the most important issue facing the community you will serve? Jobs. There has been a mass exodus of jobs and workers from the area. This needs to be reversed and relying on the two political parties that got us into this mess is no solution to the problem. Too many businesses have either failed or left the area, taking with them jobs, our heritage and our children. We need a business-friendly environment and low taxes to attract companies to locate their businesses here. The best investment we can make is in putting our people back to work and protecting family values.
What do you see as your primary goal, if elected? I would like to bring a community college to the Katahdin area – Katahdin Community College — so that our children can have the benefit of a college education without having to move out of the family home to attend school. We also need the career and technical education courses that a community college would provide. This would allow our children to learn good-paying trades in their own back yard, while benefiting the community in which they live and learn. Such an institution would supply good-paying, permanent jobs in all sectors of the local economy.
Why should people vote for you? I am an Independent candidate who will work with both sides of the aisle for the best solutions which will benefit the voters of southern Aroostook and northern Penobscot Counties. I will work to keep taxes and government spending down, while promoting good-paying, new economy, and green jobs. I will emphasize renewable energy resources as a solution to our addiction to fossil fuels. I also want schools fully funded and state pension plans protected. We must protect the workers that pay into the system, as well as the misfortunate among us.
