Progressive Barrington Woman is U.S. Senate Candidate in Maine
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
The Democratic nominee in the race to replace legendary Maine Senator Olympia Snowe grew up in Barrington, according to a profile published Monday by the Kennebec Journal.
Cynthia Dill, who currently serves in Maine’s State Senate, won a four-way Democratic primary in June, but finds herself trailing both the Republican and an Independent as the race heads down the stretch.
Dill, a progressive candidate, made waves earlier this year when she announced her plans to challenge Snowe, the popular Republican who had been planning to run for her fourth term in the Senate. But Snowe, who likely would have cruised to re-election, opted to bow out of the race, citing too much partisanship as one of the leading reasons for her retirement.
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Now Dill and the Republican candidate, Charles Summers, find themselves in a position where former Governor Angus King, an Independent, has a significant lead in the polls. According to Jennifer Duffy of the Cook Political Report, Dill faces an uphill battle with just three weeks before the election.
“She comes in third and gets less than 20 percent of the vote,” Duffy said Monday. “National Democrats haven't endorsed because they have unofficially cast their lot with Angus King. King is running as an independent and will probably win. Democrats believe that he will caucus with them.”
Very little has been mentioned about Dill’s time in Rhode Island and campaign finance records show she has raised just $350 from the Ocean State. As of June 30, records show the Democrat had raised just over $100,000 for her race.
In the article, Dill describes herself as someone who has fought bullying dating back to her days on a Barrington playground when she defended another girl who was in a wheel chair. She makes the case her willingness to stand up and have her voice heard has allowed her to become a successful lawyer and battle with Maine’s Governor.
Dill isn’t the only former Rhode Islander hoping to win federal office this year. Retired Air Force Col. Martha McSally, a Warwick native, is running for Congress in Arizona’s 2nd District. Earlier this year, she was unsuccessful in her attempt to win a special election to replace Democrat Gabrielle Giffords in the 8th Congressional district.
Dan McGowan can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @danmcgowan.
