BIDDEFORD — A former state representative for a district in the city of Portland has announced that he is running for the Democratic nomination for  State House District 12, which includes part of Biddeford.

John Eder, 49, who said he wants to fight for the middle class and traditional Democratic values, was a member of the Green Party when he was last in the Legislature from 2002 through 2006. He is running for the seat currently held by Martin Grohman.

Grohman, who is serving his second term in the Legislature, was a Democrat when he was elected both times. Last year, he withdrew from the Democratic Party and became an Independent.

Earlier this week, Eder registered his campaign with the state ethics commission and declared his intention to run as a Maine Clean Elections candidate.

In a telephone interview on Tuesday, Eder said he changed parties because “The Democratic Party values have taken a hit over the last eight years.” He said he wants to pursue those values. “I think I can do that more effectively as a Democrat.”

He added that even when he was a Green Party member while in the Legislature he often caucused with the Democrats.

Some of the issues Eder, who works as a grassroot organizer, would like to work on include greater access to health care, education and livable wages, and other issues important to working families. “I want to set those priorities back on track,” he said.

He said he would also like to promote access to education in traditional trades like construction and electrical work.

In addition, said Eder, he wants to provide “strong constituent service” and “help people navigate state government,” something he said he did when he was in the Legislature previously.

“Whether it was a laid-off worker needing to get an unemployment check, or parents trying to get special-ed services for their child, or a senior needing a tax rebate, I always put my constituents ahead of everything else. I plan to bring this ethic to work for the residents of Biddeford as their representative,” Eder said in a press release.

In addition to his two terms in the State House, Eder served as an at-large candidate member of the Portland School Board. He ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Portland in 2011.

He was also unsuccessful in his third bid for the State House. In 2006, Eder was fined $100 by the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices for failing to state in a recorded automated telephone call from the Nation Organization of Women in Maine supporting his candidacy that he paid for the call.

Eder said he moved to Biddeford about a year ago  to be closer to family. Ben and Stella Frocier, grandparents of his partner, Lauren Besanko, are long-time Biddeford residents. Eder and Basenko live with their baby daughter Stella — named for her great-grandmother —on Sullivan Street.

He said he likes the “close-knit family” feeling of Biddeford.

Eder’s background includes running away from an abusive, alcoholic home at 15 years old and taking refuge in a boys’ home run by a young Catholic priest, according to the release. He credits that priest’s example of personal sacrifice for inspiring him to dedicate his life to public service and helping others. Eder has spent nearly two decades working on progressive issues in Maine. 

Two other people have also registered with the state ethics commission for State House District 12, Bobby Mills, a former Biddeford city councilor who is also running for the Democratic nomination and Phillip Eugene Perry, who is a Libertarian.

— Associate Editor Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324, or dmendros@journaltribune.com.

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