I am please to share that I have received endorsements from the following groups:

The Maine Education Association - (from their website) "Founded in 1859, the mission of the Maine Education Association remains virtually the same: to support educators so they can inspire our students" I'm really proud of this one, as my mom is a classroom teacher! Knowing that I can play a role in helping Maine teachers and educators have what they need to ensure the success of our schools is inspiring.

Maine Conservation Voters - (from their website) "Maine Conservation Voters (MCV) ensures Maine’s decision makers keep the environment protected, healthy, and vibrant. For more than 35 years, we have been helping elect environmental champions, holding our elected leaders to the highest standard, and building statewide momentum for climate action and environmental protection through innovative accountability, coalition building, and voter outreach efforts."

I believe in the triple bottom line economic principle - people, profit, planet. These don't need to be mutually exclusive, we can strive for all three to be a part of a healthy economic future. While at the helm of USDA Rural Development I was proud to lead my team here in Maine to one of the top spots in the country for renewable energy grants to small businesses. Here's an example of just one round of those awards - 2.2 million dollars to 13 different small businesses. 

Maine AFL-CIO - (from their website) "The Maine AFL-CIO Is a state federation of over 200 local labor unions representing over 42,000 working men and women and retirees across the state.  We work to improve the lives and working conditions of our members and all workers in the state." While I have not been part of a union I know that the fight union organizers have waged on behalf of working people everywhere is why we have weekends, decent working conditions, and so much more. In a state that traditionally heavily relied on industry, unions held the line for good jobs. This strength along with the large number of owner-operated businesses that we are lucky to have here in Maine, creates a labor environment we are proud of - Maine workers are the backbone of this economy and we are well-supported here.

Maine Service Employees Association, Local 1989 of the Service Employees International Union - (from their website) "MSEA-SEIU Local 1989 is an organization of Maine workers who advocate for our families, our coworkers, our communities and the services we all rely on" 
Having been a service worker more times than I can count, this one is particularly important for me. As I shared above, I believe that Maine has done better than many states when it comes to helping create and defend good jobs - MSEA-SEIU 1989 is one of the organizations that supports that success. 

Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC (PPMEAF PAC) - (from their website) "We advocate and organize for sexual and reproductive health care and abortion rights" My very first national protest was in 1992 when I was 15 years old. I went down to Washington DC on a bus full of women to protect and defend rights I didn’t know if I'd ever need - but it wasn't about me and what would or wouldn't happen in my future. It was about making sure that women could engage critical health care services during their most vulnerable moments. I never guessed that 30 years later I would watch those rights evaporate as the Supreme Court ruled on Dobbs and hundreds of thousands of families would be left without access to the health care they needed. Here in Maine in 2023 our state legislature made sure that women, families, and health care providers were the ones making decisions about reproductive care, as it should be. Because it simply isn't anyone else's business (this is my go-to answer for so many things and a sure fire way to know I'm a Mainer!).