AUGUSTA — Mainers brought the Occupy Wall Street movement to the steps of the State House on Saturday, as dozens of people rallied there and in Capitol Park.

The first day of Occupy Augusta attracted about 100 people, many of whom carried signs calling for a variety of reforms: a living wage for all Americans, an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, environmental protections or limitations on corporate influence on policymaking.

Those reforms need to happen not just in Washington and on Wall Street, but also in Augusta, said Ellsworth resident Janea Kelley, who carried a sign that said: “Hey Gov. LePage, you work for the other 99% too.”

Kelley said LePage and many Maine lawmakers are working for the interests of outside lobbying groups, such as the American Legislative Exchange Council, rather than for hardworking Mainers.

“The state level is symptomatic of the larger problem,” Kelley said. “Corporate greed and corporate money in the political system has hurt all of us.”

Kelley, 43, feels lucky to work in a job she likes at a nonprofit organization and to have health insurance. But she said she sees lots of people around her struggling, just as she did when she was growing up.

“I remember where I came from, and I’m here for the people who can’t be here because they’re just trying to make ends meet,” she said.

Occupy Augusta began late Saturday morning, and several protesters planned to camp in Capitol Park overnight.

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