No matter who we get for our next governor it’s hard to imagine that they could be any worse than the one we’ve been saddled with for nearly seven years. Even a clone-like replacement such as Mary Mayhew would likely be a major step-up towards someone willing to actually govern, and willing to work within a political reality where the legislature isn’t expected to just do what they are told. Then again, hard to tell. Conventional wisdom isn’t as reliable as it once was before Paul LePage twice defied all reasonable expectations of the Maine electorate.

Maybe LePage’s base will be dismissively underestimated once again and the Democrats will find themselves even more bewildered by another never-saw-it-coming because we’re-still-in-resistance denial defeat. Thank goodness Maine limits how many times its governorship, whether good or bad, can be reelected in a row so the possibility of an immediate third LePage reign of petulant obstructionism can’t become another how-could-that-possibly happen reality.

Maybe Maine’s Republican primary process will surprisingly produce an attractive moderate nominee who can achieve not just a plurality but a clear majority mandate. Someone who can bring conservative values back towards the center and rally sufficient support from the center-left. That, however, seems unlikely given how the Republican lineup to maintain control of the Blaine House now stands.

The Republicans presently have three declared contestants in the race: House Minority Leader Ken Fredette, Senate Majority Leader Garrett Mason and former Health and Human Services Commissioner Mary Mayhew. Each one has demonstrated themselves to be a staunch ally of the sitting governor’s unbending arch-conservative vision for Maine.

On the Democratic side there are now eight contestants seeking their party’s nomination. Seven of them recently participated in a Maine People’s Alliance forum held in Lewiston for what was a very up-close two-hour exchange between candidates and the electorate.

Some of the candidates had recognizable names and faces. I had no previous awareness of the others. With all I had no real familiarity with what their individual positions or governing aspirations might be.

Introductory remarks opening the forum did little to help in clearly distinguishing one from another. Each had two minutes to summarize their merits and why they’d decided to run. All spoke to familiar Democratic talking points and affirmed their support of a politically correct mantra of inclusiveness, justice and resistance towards the draconian politics of the Right. Two came across as predominantly single-issue proponents.

Several spoke of their deep Maine roots and can-do ancestry. Most expressed their identification with working class values while then mostly addressing the concerns of the middle class. All came across as committed individuals entering the race to bring about progressive change rather than personal aggrandizement.

The forum itself quickly put both candidates and attendees into freewheeling lightning rounds within small circular seating Q&A encounters. Each candidate was assigned an initial group from which they rotated when allotted time was reached. Taking turns clockwise within their designated circle, each attendee could pitch a question for the candidate to field. The dynamics of the forum’s town hall on-steroids design provided a non-stop near one-on-one exchange of viewpoints and concerns between all involved.

Unfortunately, Maine Attorney General Janet Mills, the early favorite of the Democratic establishment, didn’t participate. Those that did made no reference to her odd absence and there was no low road criticism of each other. Little time was wasted on LePage bashing. Preaching to the choir was all but absent as candidates concentrated on presenting their own stand apart leadership skillsets. The ability to listen was notably the most commonly expressed attribute thought needed in moving Maine forward, and the strongest contestants exhibited that ability quite convincingly as well as their promise to work across party lines if elected.

Mark Eves, former Speaker of the Maine House, and Diane Russell, former State Representative, were most striking overall. Attorney Adam Cote and former Maine Women’s Lobby director Betsy Sweet were also impressive despite having held no previous political office. Businessman Adam Lee remained a “wait and see” dark horse possibility.

Mingling about afterwards, most participants seemed sufficiently buoyed by what they had encountered. Some expressed concerns as to the pragmatic issue of likability and like-mindedness versus electability.

My own takeaway was that none of those criteria should dominate one’s decision making.

Be an informed voter, as much as you can. Then trust your gut and vote your conscience. Vote for someone you really believe in rather than voting for whom you think is, or have been told is, the most electable. Maine’s conservative idealists have twice proven that an unconventional but winning strategic plan. That’s how Governor LePage got nominated by his party and how he won out over candidates whose support was more from the head than the heart, more about an overly confident believed numerical superiority than a professed principled inclusiveness reaching out across the aisle.

Think beyond partisan victory or your own personal agenda. Support someone who voices a real and passionate vision for what would best serve all who live here in Maine.

Gary Anderson lives in Bath.