Gov.-elect Janet Mills has added six members to her staff, two of whom previously worked for fellow Democrat Chellie Pingree, Maine’s 1st District congresswoman.

Mills has hired Elise Baldacci and Bethany Beausang to serve as policy advisers, Dorian Cole and Martha Currier to work on constituent services, Michael Perry to serve as special assistant in charge of scheduling, and Melissa A. O’Neal to serve as director of Boards and Commissions, Mills’ transition team said in a news release Monday.

“The people of Maine will be well-served by their vast experiences, their depth of knowledge, and their commitment to service. I look forward to working with them in the years ahead,” Mills said in a statement.

The latest appointments come two days before Mills will be sworn in as Maine’s 75th governor. She will be inaugurated during a public event at the Augusta Civic Center at 6 p.m. Wednesday.

Here is a closer look at the new staffers:

Currier, 40, most recently served as the complaint examiner for the Consumer Information and Mediation Service in the Consumer Protection Division of the Maine Office of the Attorney General, a position in which she helped Maine people resolve their problems. She also previously served as the legislative liaison for the Office of Attorney General and as a legislative aide in the Maine Senate.

As director of constituent casework, “Currier will be responsible for helping ensure that state government is responsive to the needs of Maine people by acting as a liaison with them and state government and helping to answer questions, find resources, or resolve problems,” the news release said.

Cole, 39, worked for Pingree from 2012 to 2018 as a legislative correspondent managing her constituent services program and, most recently, she worked as an account executive at Mach3Media.

As director of constituent correspondence, Cole will be responsible for responding to correspondence sent to Mills by Maine people on policy issues.

Perry, 32, currently serves as the scheduler for Mills’ transition. Prior to that, he served on the finance team on her gubernatorial election campaign and worked on Lucas St. Clair’s congressional campaign.

As special assistant to the governor, Perry will be responsible for scheduling and other related duties.

O’Neal, 46, has served as the executive assistant to Mills, Maine’s attorney general, for the past two years. Before that, she served as the director of development and outreach for the Land Conservation Assistance Network in Falmouth and was a special projects coordinator for the Energy and Telecommunications Department at the law firm of Preti Flaherty.

As director of Boards and Commissions, O’Neal will be responsible for overseeing Mills’ appointments to boards and commissions throughout the state.

Baldacci, 31, served as vice president of governmental affairs for the Maine Credit Union League, where she was the face for Maine credit unions in Augusta and Washington. She is the niece of former Gov. John Baldacci.

Beausang, 47, served as a district representative and counsel to Pingree from 2011 through 2018, focusing on issues related to economic development, small business, budget, taxes and health care. She began her career working in the Washington office of U.S. Sen.William Cohen, R-Maine, and then spent a number of years working on the staff of U.S. Rep. Tom Allen, D-Maine.

As senior policy advisers, Baldacci and Beausang will be responsible for overseeing a portfolio of legislative issues, advising Mills on those issues, and serving as liaisons to the Legislature.

Baldacci, Beausang, Cole, Currier, Perry and O’Neal will all report to Chief of Staff Jeremy Kennedy and join him, Communications Director Scott Ogden, and Press Secretary Lindsay Crete on Mills’ staff. She said she will announce additional staff members this week.

Scott Thistle can be contacted at 791-6330 or at:

sthistle@pressherald.com

Twitter: thisdog

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