BRUNSWICK — Former Sen. Stan Gerzofsky has been “recharging (his) batteries” for the past four years and is ready and waiting to run for his old seat representing District 24 in the Maine State Senate.
Gerzofsky was first elected to the Maine House of Representatives from Brunswick in 2000, and served four terms before running for and winning the race for Senate District 24, which includes Brunswick, Freeport, Harpswell, North Yarmouth and Pownal. He served another four terms and termed out in 2016, replaced by Everett “Brownie” Carson.
State law required that Gerzofsky leave the Senate for two years, and while he always intended to run again, he said previously that he “hates” when Democrats challenge incumbent Democrats.
“I’ve known (Carson) for a long time,” Gerzofsky said Friday, “and as long as he was enjoying it, I wouldn’t try to usurp that. If not, I would then be running for my old seat again.”
Gerzofsky is running against Democratic House Rep. Mattie Daughtry, who announced her campaign earlier this month.
Daughtry, 32, has represented Brunswick in the House for the past eight years.
Sen. Stan Gerzofsky in this undated Forecaster file photo.
Gerzofsky said he thinks the gender and generational differences will play a role in their respective campaigns, but said he feels confident in his institutional knowledge and progressive attitude.
During his political tenure, Gerzofsky became “a strong voice for the communities he represents. … From helping local clammers to helping a single constituent find the state resources they need,” according to a 2016 Times Record article.
He was instrumental in the redevelopment of Brunswick Landing and Brunswick Executive Airport — perhaps most notably, bringing a Southern Maine Community College campus to Brunswick.
He helped bring the Mere Point Boat Launch to Brunswick, an act he called “one of the most important things I ever did. And that’s up against a college and an airport.”
If re-elected, he will continue working on the base redevelopment, bringing in more educational components for job creation and helping to “create an environment for businesses to be successful and want to come here,” he said.
He also wants to provide more affordable housing to help draw more people to Brunswick, and address the cost of education.
Gerzofsky called term limits “an artificial means of getting rid of experienced people who have gotten along well and done well.”
However, he does see how they might be beneficial for the politicians themselves.
“I had worn myself out, pretty much, up in Augusta,” he said.
Gerzofsky has stayed busy in the past few years, serving on the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority board and helping to oversee redevelopment at the site of the former Brunswick Naval Airstation, recovering from some health issues and an operation, remodeling his house, and adopting and training a German Shepherd named Ruger who he said is his “best friend (and) biggest supporter.”
Carson announced his retirement from the legislature late last year, and Gerzofsky decided it was time for a comeback.
“It was forced retirement but it actually worked out rather well for me,” he said. “I could come home, talk to my constituents. … This is not a surprise to most people that know me.”
“I like being involved, I like understanding the issues, and I like making sure my constituents understand the issues,” he said.
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