As we go into this season of thanks, I wanted to take a moment to thank each one of you for the support and encouragement over the course of my campaign for City Council.  And what a campaign it was!  While, like many of you, I am disappointed with the outcome, I am extremely proud of the campaign we ran.  We were all a little part of national history.

I want to take a moment to thank the City Clerk, Kathy Jones, and Corporation Counsel, Jennifer Thompson, and their entire staff for their professionalism and patience throughout the election process and recount.  It was an incredibly stressful time for all of us and they all were amazing.  We are lucky to have them representing our City.

Thank you to the other candidates who ran: Roberto Rodriquez, Stuart Tisdale, and Travis Curran.  The discussions we had at the many forums made me a better candidate and resident of Portland.

Finally, I want to thank my entire family for their love and support over the last six months.  There were many times where I would arrive late or miss a family dinner while I was campaigning, but I always knew they were rooting me on and the Facetime videos I would receive kept me going.  Thank you.

Through our positive campaign we were able to show that you can be supportive of progressive policies like affordable housing, alternative modes of transportation, property taxes and supporting our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness without being divisive or pitting people against each other.  This campaign was focused on talking about policies and the experience needed to implement them and that clearly resonated with voters.  At the end of the day, we all want Portland to be the thriving City we all love.

I wish the new incoming councilors as well as those remaining all the best – their success is our success. I hope they can work together and pass policies that address the City’s needs.  I also hope they recognize that the results of this campaign show that the City, as a whole, is split. The hard discussions that are to come need to include the many diverse thoughts and opinions of our residents.  We are one Portland.

I have received numerous emails, texts and phone calls hoping that I will remain involved.  You can be rest assured that I will continue to work to make Portland a better place in my volunteer capacities and while I serve on the Planning Board.  As I spoke about many times on the campaign, the Planning Board is currently undertaking ReCode Phase 2 where the entire zoning code will be reviewed.  This is a huge undertaking — one that I plan on being deeply involved with and hope to help neighborhoods across the City understand.

Friends, new and old, thank you for this experience and the lifelong memories.  Please, don’t be strangers — email me at brandon@brandonmazer.com or call anytime at 207-619-0212. Happy Thanksgiving.