SACO — Democrat incumbent Justin Chenette was re-elected to the State Senate District 31 seat, serving Hollis, Limington, Old Orchard Beach, Saco and part of Buxton.
Chenette, who lives in Saco, ran against Hollis resident Stavros Mendros.
Chenette beat Mendros 12,097 to 6,101.
Chenette won three out of five municipalities, beating Mendros 3,297 to 1,338 in Old Orchard Beach, 6,671 to 2,432 in Saco and 332 to 297 in Buxton.
Mendros bested Chenette in Hollis 1,128 to 1,079 and Limington 906 to 718.
Chenette, 27, is the marketing director for Saco Sport and Fitness and owner of Chenette Media.
Chenette served in the state house for four years and has served as District 31 State Senator since 2016. He served on the Maine State Board of Education for one year.
Chenette is president of local economic development organization Saco Main Street and vice-president of Friends of The Ballpark. He is also a member of the Saco Bay Rotary Club and both the Biddeford + Saco and Old Orchard Beach chambers of commerce. He heads a non-profit that has given thousands of dollars of college scholarship money to students at Thornton Academy and Old Orchard Beach High School.
“This is a win for our community and our entire district. Voters sent a strong message that they want an ethical, transparent, and accessible senator,” Chenette said in an email statement on Wednesday morning. Addressing the voters he added, “This is your seat. I work for you.”
“Next session we must prioritize property tax relief for seniors, traffic issues, education funding, and holding our utility companies accountable for double digit rate increases and questionable billing practices,” Chenette said.
Elsewhere in the area, voters re-elected three current town councilors in Old Orchard Beach.
There were five candidates running for three town council seats – current councilors Kenneth Blow, Michael Tousignant and Shawn O’Neil, former town councilor Roxanne Frenette and community volunteer Israel Colllins.
The winners were O’Neil with 2,606 votes, Tousignant with 2,429 votes and Blow with 2,247 votes. Frenette received 2,191 votes and Collins received 1,432 votes. There were also 3,289 blank votes.
Town councilors serve two-year terms.
Three school board candidates were running for two Regional School Unit 23 Board seats. RSU 23 covers Old Orchard Beach and school board terms are three years.
Current School Board Chairman David Boudreau was re-elected with 2,405 votes and former school board member Michelle Violette was elected with 2,866 votes. The third candidate, Robert Lepauloue, received 1321 votes. There were 2,862 blank votes.
Current Town Clerk Kim McLaughlin ran unopposed and was re-elected with 4,094 votes.
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